Meghan Hughes (202) 224-5972 or Kevin Bishop (864) 250-1417

WASHINGTON - Continuing his commitment to the repeal and replace of Obamacare, United States Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) has introduced legislation to repeal another major provision of the recently-passed health care law - the Community Living Assistance Services and Support (CLASS) Act.

"The CLASS Act is a Ponzi scheme that would make Bernie Madoff blush," said Graham. "It's billed as an insurance program for long-term care, but really it's just a huge and very costly government accounting trick."

Graham said:

• Under the CLASS Act, the government can begin collecting long-term care ‘insurance' premiums in 2011.
• The CLASS Act won't begin to pay out benefits - at the earliest -- until 2016.
• The government will use the initial ‘surplus' from CLASS Act to pay for other programs created by the health care bill.
• By 2025, benefit payments will exceed premium revenues and the CLASS Act will run deficits. American taxpayers will be on the hook to cover the annual shortfalls.
• The government's chief accountant for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has even sounded the warning alarm noting the CLASS Act faces, "a significant risk of failure."

"To help build momentum for repeal and replace of Obamacare, we should continue holding up all the individual pieces of this monstrosity - like the CLASS Act - to the light of day," said Graham. "The more Americans learn about the details of this health care bill, and provisions like the CLASS Act, the less they like it. The sooner we can repeal and replace Obamacare, the better off our nation will be."

Senators Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma), Saxby Chambliss (R-Georgia), John Cornyn (R-Texas), and John McCain (R-Arizona) joined Graham as co-sponsors of the legislation, The Long-Term Care Bailout Prevention Act.

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