Subject: Re: Memo on Cadillac Tax for HRC
From: "Ann O'Leary" <[email-masked]>
To: H <[email-masked]>
Cc: Jake Sullivan <[email-masked]>, John Podesta <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 2015 06:30:29 -0700

Sounds good. I'll work on it. Thanks!

Ann O’Leary
Sent from my iPhone
(510) 717-5518 (cell)

On Sep 27, 2015, at 5:59 AM, H <[email-masked]> wrote:

Since it didn't come up, let's do a statement keyed off the legislation
that was just introduced.
------------------------------
*From:* Ann O'Leary <[email-masked]>
*Sent:* Sunday, September 27, 2015 2:51:40 AM
*To:* H
*Cc:* Jake Sullivan; John Podesta
*Subject:* Re: Memo on Cadillac Tax for HRC

If it does comes up, here is my suggested response.  If it does not come
up, we'll regroup and work on a statement to get out next week:

*Q: Would you repeal the Cadillac tax?*

·      Yes, I would. While I continue to believe that we need a bold set of
policies to reduce the growth of health costs that eats into workers’
wages, I do not think we should pass the full burden of doing this onto the
backs of consumers and workers.

·      The Affordable Care Act is already working to slow the growth of
health spending. We have had the slowest growth in health spending in five
decades.

·      Yet, too many Americans – who had good health insurance before and
still have good insurance after the ACA – are not experiencing this
downward trend in health spending.  Instead they are seeing their
deductibles rise, their prescription drug costs skyrocket and they don’t
know how to make ends meet and stay health.

·      I worry that if the Cadillac Tax is implemented, workers who have
fought hard for good health insurance, simply won’t have it any longer
because employers will demand workers pay more and more out of pocket.

·      Just this week the Kaiser Family Foundation released a survey showing
that the average deductible that Americans with employer based coverage
have to pay before their insurance kicks in is over $1300, and has grown 7X
faster than workers wages since 2010.

·      Now, let me be clear I do not believe that we should simply repeal
the Cadillac Tax without determining how we would pay for lost revenue –
this revenue is essential to helping subsidize affordable health insurance
through the health exchanges and allowing the federal government to
robustly help states expand Medicaid.

·       If Congress repeals the Cadillac Tax, it must pay for it and we
must work together to reform the delivery of health care to make it more
value driven and more cost efficient.

On Sat, Sep 26, 2015 at 4:59 PM, H <[email-masked]> wrote:

> I doubt it will come up on MTP. We should just plan to put out statement.
> ------------------------------
> *From:* Ann O'Leary <[email-masked]>
> *Sent:* Saturday, September 26, 2015 7:39:43 PM
> *To:* Jake Sullivan
> *Cc:* H; John Podesta
> *Subject:* Re: Memo on Cadillac Tax for HRC
>
> Very much agree. Let me check with Jen and Brian on whether to do this on
> Meet the Press and then work up the right talking points.
>
>
> Ann O’Leary
> Sent from my iPhone
> (510) 717-5518 (cell)
>
> On Sep 26, 2015, at 4:19 PM, Jake Sullivan <[email-masked]>
> wrote:
>
> Your point on R version is key.  Our Bernie contrast rests on defending
> ACA, so crucial to cast this as a fix and to be on the lookout for R
> efforts to make this a Trojan Horse for broader dismantling of the ACA.
>
>
>
> On Sep 26, 2015, at 7:17 PM, H <[email-masked]> wrote:
>
> Given the politics now w bipartisan support including Schumer, I'll
> support repeal w "sense of the Senate" that revenues would have to be
> found. I'd be open to a range of options to do that. But we have to be
> careful that the R version passes which begins the unraveling of the ACA.
>
>
>
> On Sep 26, 2015, at 6:10 PM, Ann O'Leary <[email-masked]>
> wrote:
>
> Madam Secretary -
>
> I wanted to be sure you saw this memo on the Cadillac Tax.
>
> In short, we are recommending that you call for repeal but go back to your
> 2008 position that workers over $250K not be exempt from paying taxes on
> their health care. This will allow us to take in some revenue and show a
> consistency of your position without harming middle class workers. It would
> do little, however, to control health care consumption and costs.
>
> There remains a divide among your advisors with the economic team
> interested in you offering a "fix it" approach (Option 3) in the memo and
> your political team very interested in you coming out for full repeal
> because of the union implications (Option 1). Several of your advisors -
> Neera and Chris, chief among them - offered this middle ground that Jake
> and I thought could work (Option 2).
>
> Subsequently, I've talked to Randi Weingarten who has been taking the
> pulse of the unions in it. While she thinks they can live with the $250K
> position, she thinks you don't gain much from it and feels the most
> important thing is that you get out there not only offering empathy for
> workers and the cost-shifting they are experiencing but you make clear that
> this tax would mean health savings on the backs of workers and you won't do
> it that way.
>
> If you did come out for repeal, we would recommend coupling it with strong
> delivery system reforms and making clear that Congress find a way to pay
> fir it (we don't recommend having you offer the pay-for since they are
> actively working on it I the Senate).
>
> Because you are going on Meet the Press tomorrow, we wanted to check in on
> whether you wanted to make your position clear on the show. Comms team
> feels that only straight up repeal would make news.
>
> Jake and John can weigh in further and we are happy to discuss.
>
> Thanks,
> Ann
>
>
> Ann O’Leary
> Sent from my iPhone
> (510) 717-5518 (cell)
>
> Begin forwarded message:
>
> *From:* "Ann O'Leary" <[email-masked]>
> *Date:* September 25, 2015 at 9:24:16 AM PDT
> *To:* Dan Stein <[email-masked]>, Robert Russo <
> [email-masked]>
> *Cc:* Jake Sullivan <[email-masked]>,  Michael Shapiro <
> [email-masked]>
> *Subject:* *Memo on Cadillac Tax for HRC*
>
> Dan & Rob -
>
> Could you please get this memo to HRC today?
>
> Thanks very much,
> Ann
>
> --
> Ann O'Leary
> Senior Policy Advisor
> Hillary for America
> Cell: 510-717-5518
>
> <Cadillac Tax Memo - Sept 25 2015 FINAL.docx>
>
>

-- 
Ann O'Leary
Senior Policy Advisor
Hillary for America
Cell: 510-717-5518