WASHINGTON – Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) joined Senators John McCain (R-AZ), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Ben Sasse (R-NE), and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) today in introducing the Protection from Obamacare Monopolies Act, legislation that would protect Wisconsinites who live in a county with less than two insurers offering Obamacare exchange plans from the individual mandate penalty.  

Three counties in western Wisconsin had just one health care provider offering health care plans in the Obamacare marketplace in 2016: Polk, St. Croix and Pierce County. In 2017, it is expected that Menominee County will be added to that list. Nationally, according to Kaiser Family Foundation, the number of Obamacare exchange enrollees with only one insurer to choose from is estimated to jump from 2% for 2016 to 19% for 2017.

Sen. Johnson said this: “The definition of ‘marketplace’ is an economic system in which companies compete with each other to sell their products. It leads to lower prices, higher quality, and a higher level of customer service. The Obamacare definition of marketplace, by contrast, has resulted in a failed government system that reduces competition and its benefits. Under Obamacare, Wisconsinites can be penalized for not buying a company’s product, even when there is only one company selling it. This legislation would help ensure that Wisconsin families won't have to pay a penalty to help cover the cost of Obamacare’s failed promise of consumer choice."

The text of the legislation can be found here.