Once again, a Democrat got caught lying about Ron Johnson and Obamacare so egregiously that even Politifact won’t defend them.
It’s certainly not the first time, and there’s a reason Axios labeled similar criticisms as “misinformation.”
But these attacks keep getting more and more desperate, and after today’s fundraising numbers, maybe now we know why.
ICYMI…
Godlewski off-base with claim on Johnson’s view on coverage for those with pre-existing conditions
Madeline Heim
PolitiFact
April 15, 2022
It’s no secret that U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson isn’t a fan of the Affordable Care Act, the signature health care law of the Obama administration, passed in 2010.
A hallmark of the law was its rule that health insurance companies can’t refuse to cover people or charge them more if they have a pre-existing condition — a health problem they had before the insurance coverage started.
Wisconsin State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski, a Democrat who’s vying to unseat Johnson this fall, targeted Johnson this way in a April 1, 2022 tweet:
“Ron Johnson is trying to let insurance companies deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions like cancer, depression, pregnancy, diabetes — or even COVID.”
That coverage, of course, is a key provision in the ACA.
But does that mean Godlewski is right?
2017 amendment wouldn’t have denied sick people health coverage, but could have hiked up cost
When asked to provide evidence of her claim, Godlewski’s office sent a list of votes Johnson has cast in favor of repealing or scaling back the health care law.
[…]
But just because he wanted to get rid of the law doesn’t necessarily mean he wanted people with pre-existing conditions to go without protections. After all, many Republicans have said they support that provision, and it is widely popular with voters.
[…]
Johnson has said he wants to protect people with pre-existing conditions
Johnson’s office said the senator has committed to protections for people with pre-existing conditions. They pointed to his introduction of the Protect Act in February 2021, which would prohibit health insurers from imposing exclusions on plans based on pre-existing conditions. (The bill has not moved from committee.)
They also cited a response Johnson gave to a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel inquiry about his views on health care on March 17, 2022: “The first step in any health care reform would assure everyone that people with preexisting conditions would be protected by having their insurance rates subsidized so that they pay the same rates as those without preexisting conditions.”
In a June 26, 2017 New York Times opinion piece criticizing the Republican alternative to the Affordable Care Act, Johnson wrote that he was in part dissatisfied with the bill because it “leaves in place the pre-existing condition rules that drive up the cost of insurance for everyone.”
[…]
[G]iven current facts as they’re known, Godlewski’s claim doesn’t quite hold up.
Our ruling
Godlewski claimed Johnson is trying to let insurance companies deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
The senator did cast a vote in 2017 that would have opened the door for insurance companies to offer such plans, but still would have required them to offer other plans that did provide that coverage.
And he’s said consistently that he aims to protect coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.
Our definition of Mostly False is a statement that contains an element of truth but ignores critical facts that would give a different impression. That fits here.
