Dizzy Yet with HHS’ U-Turns on CLASS?
Politico reports this afternoon that the Administration is attempting to “knock down” rumors – reported here and elsewhere – that HHS will be closing the CLASS Act office. According to the Politico piece, the HHS statement said:
- The Administration is not killing the CLASS program; but
- The Administration has not decided to go forward with the CLASS program; and
- The Administration has not closed the CLASS office; but
- All the employees in the CLASS office are being re-assigned.
The actuary whose departure e-mail sparked this little controversy spoke to CongressDaily about his claim the CLASS office is being closed: “I don’t think that’s the official line.” Then again, given the confusing and slightly bewildering nature of the HHS statements on the matter, it’s somewhat hard to figure out what “the official line” really is.
The bigger question is why this change – whatever HHS wants to call it – is happening in the first place. HHS has had 18 months to figure out how to implement CLASS. Today’s developments do nothing to resolve the major questions regarding solvency – in fact, they only adds to them. If the Administration can’t figure out how to implement the program after a year and a half, why hasn’t HHS decided to “fish or cut bait” about whether or not the program can be implemented in a fiscally responsible manner? Is the Administration attempting to hide a major policy problem related to Obamacare in advance of the President’s re-election bid – because HHS and the White House do not want to admit that they allowed a fundamentally insolvent program to be enacted by Congress?