GAO: Obama Admin Has No Legal Authority To Make Risk Corridor Payments Without Congressional Action

Press Release

U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, and U.S. Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, released the following statements today after the Government Accountability Office issued a legal opinion at their request regarding the risk corridor program in Obamacare:

"GAO has confirmed beyond dispute that the Department of Health and Human Services has no legal authority to disburse risk corridor payments under Obamacare absent a congressional appropriation," said Sessions. "I hope this nips in the bud any ideas this overreaching Administration might have of paying out money not appropriated by Congress. Such expenditures would violate bedrock separation of powers principles in the Constitution."

"Following the law matters. We had serious concerns with the legality of the Obama administration's plan from the get go, and the government's watchdog confirms we were right," said Upton. "Today's report sounds the alarm once again on the Administration's efforts to unlawfully subsidize its health care law with taxpayer dollars. American taxpayers are already on the hook for a still-incomplete health exchange with a price tag that exceeds $2 billion."

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