Mulling the pros and cons of a govt. shutdown

Congressioinal Republicans are at odds about whether they should try to block all funding for the health law's implementation -- even if it triggers a government shutdown. Some say it wouldn't work anyway and might bring with it a high political cost. But a new poll shows blame would likely be split evenly between Democrats and the GOP.

NPR: GOP Debate: Is Obamacare Fight Worth A Government Shutdown?
Congressional Republicans agree that the new federal health care program should be ended. But they are finding themselves bitterly divided over how. They have tried dozens of times to repeal it. Now, some GOP lawmakers want to block all money for Obamacare in a stopgap spending bill that must be approved next month to prevent the government from shutting down on Oct. 1. But other Republicans say that won't work and may well backfire (Welna, 8/14).

Politico: Poll: Shutdown Blame Would Be Split
House members shouldn't worry about losing their seats if they oppose spending bills that contain Obamacare funding, conservatives said Wednesday. The blame for a potential government shutdown when the current spending bill expires Sept. 30 over the issue of stripping out funding for the Affordable Care Act would be spread among congressional Republicans, Democrats and President Barack Obama, according to a poll by GOP-leaning Basswood Research commissioned by Heritage Action for America (Everett, 8/14).

In other news -

Health News Florida: Obamacare Controls Prices: McCarty
Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty says there's no need for the state to regulate health premiums because the Affordable Care Act has a rule that keeps them under control. In a discussion with the Orlando Sentinel editorial board, McCarty said the ACA contains a "self-regulator" that limits the amount of the premium that companies can keep for administrative expenses and profits (Gentry, 8/14).