Early Numbers Suggest Tiny Enrollment for Obamacare

It was a given — as obvious as could be — that the Obama White House has hidden Obamacare’s enrollment numbers from the public because the number is embarrassing. Here’s President Obama’s signature policy, one of the most divisive laws of the past few decades. It’s disrupting millions of lives and threatens the economy, while also permanently altering the citizen’s relationship to the state. If all this was done just to insure a tiny number of Americans…

Health-care consultant Avalere Health reported Monday that 3% of the expected 2014 enrollment figure was met as of last week, or 49,100 registrants out of 1.4 million, for 12 of the 15 exchanges available in 14 states and the District of Columbia. No figures were available for California, Massachusetts and Oregon and aren’t included in the totals. Also not included are figures from HealthCare.gov, the troubled online registration system for President Obama’s health-care overhaul in 36 states.

That agrees with a WSJ report that finds about 40,000 to 50,000 enrollees, total.

Meanwhile far more — about 80,000 — will lose their health insurance in Louisiana alone. Nationwide, we’re looking at millions losing their health insurance just between now and then end of the year. Once the employer mandate kicks in, many more will lose their insurance and the numbers could reach around 90 million or more.

There are the promises of big government, and then there is the reality. Promise only unicorns and happy talk, then deliver division, disruption and pain.

Obamacare should kill off progressivism as a viable political force, for the simple reason that the progressive enterprise has had 60 years to plan for the moment it could finally pass some kind of health care reform, which has been its goal since the time of Truman. After all those decades and failed attempts, they get something passed and it’s a huge and indefensible mess.

But the sad fact is, Obamacare won’t kill off progressivism. On one hand too many voters support progressive politics without regard to its effects — it makes them feel good, so they support it. On the other hand, progressives as a lot tend to be arrogant and incapable of admitting when they get something wrong. Even now they’re blaming Republicans, the insurance companies, even their fellow Americans — anyone but themselves, for supporting an unqualified man who would lead an ill-considered effort to remake the economy in their image.