Dems to GOP: Show us your health insurance

NPR, March 16, 2011

With Republicans on Capitol Hill still trying every legislative manuever they can think of to undo last year's health law, it was probably only a matter of time before Democrats tried a gambit of their own. Now a House bill being pushed by Democrats would require Republicans to publicly state whether or not they are accepting taxpayer-subsidized health benefits under the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program. They're entitled to such coverage as members of Congress, but Democrats say it's hypocritical for Republicans who are voting to take health coverage away from millions of Americans to accept coverage subsidized by those same people. By pushing a repeal of the big federal health law so hard, Republicans have "made it clear that they were OK with millions of Americans going without health insurance or struggling to find affordable healthcare," said Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA). "What Republicans didn't make clear is that they, on the other hand, were OK with receiving government-subsidized healthcare benefits."