Rubio Campaign Press Release - Fact Check: Did Marco Rubio Take the Lead on the ObamaCare Bailouts?

Marco led the fight against the ObamaCare bailout fund that to date has saved taxpayers $2.5 billion.

Check out the facts below:

• Marco was the first to identify the likelihood of an ObamaCare bailout in November 2013.
• Marco introduced legislation to stop it.
• Marco rallied support from conservative organizations and members of Congress.
• Marco ultimately succeeded by making it a Republican priority in the 2014 spending bill that became law.
• Marco made stopping the ObamaCare bailout a top priority of his conservative agenda, and succeeded because he was able to get others to buy into that agenda.

And check out these media accounts:

RedState: "Marco Rubio Helps Kill Obamacare." (11/24/15)

American Thinker: "Marco Rubio Has Killed ObamaCare." (11/20/15)

Washington Examiner: "Rubio To GOP Congressional Leaders: Let's Stop Obamacare Bailouts." (11/24/15)

FACT: Marco "dealt the biggest blow in the GOP's five-year war against ObamaCare."

"Rubio may have dealt the biggest blow in the GOP's five-year war against ObamaCare."

Sen. Marco Rubio may have dealt the biggest blow in the GOP's five-year war against ObamaCare. A 2014 budget measure inspired by the Florida senator and presidential hopeful is pushing some insurers to drop out of the ObamaCare exchanges, experts say. (The Hill, 11/24/15)

Rubio provision has "rattled confidence in the durability of President Obama's signature health law."

A little-noticed health care provision that Senator Marco Rubio of Florida slipped into a giant spending law last year has tangled up the Obama administration, sent tremors through health insurance markets and rattled confidence in the durability of President Obama's signature health law. (The New York Times, 12/9/15)

"Marco Rubio conceived and pushed a plan that will all but kill ObamaCare — and he did it years ago. Thank you." (American Thinker, 11/20/15)

"Rubio can claim a concrete, major accomplishment."

As he looks for an issue to distinguish himself from governors who (unsuccessfully) went to court to get rid of Obamacare and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Fla.), who led the shutdown proclaiming only he was a true anti-Obamacare fighter, Rubio can claim a concrete, major accomplishment. That is hard to do for a freshman senator in a body that until recently took very few votes. It just might turn out to be the calling card he needs to climb over the rest of the pack. (Jennifer Rubin, The Washington Post, 11/25/15)

"Rubio has already taken major steps toward dismantling ObamaCare."

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio has already taken major steps toward dismantling Obamacare. The Florida Republican managed to tack on a policy rider to the 2014 Cromnibus spending bill preventing the risk corridor program from bailing out insurance companies losing money under the administration's landmark health-care legislation, and is hoping to do it again. (Daily Caller, 12/9/15)

"Marco Rubio has already cut ObamaCare's throat."

ObamaCare is on death watch. On Wednesday, Cigna CEO David Cordani said the giant insurer won't commit to offering policies on the ObamaCare exchanges beyond next year. This, just two weeks after a similar announcement from the country's largest insurer, UnitedHealth. The problem: Exchange policies (written by Democratic politicians and bureaucrats) turn out to be a good deal only if you're sick. Healthy folks have been opting out — so not enough are paying premiums to make selling the policies profitable. One gimmick might keep insurers in the game: The law's 'risk corridor' provision allowed Washington to tax profitable exchange plans to prop up unprofitable ones. But even in Year One, there weren't enough profits to cover the losses — so Team Obama transferred money from elsewhere. This subsidy was entirely distinct from the law's support for lower-income folks: It was a bailout for the companies. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) put a stop to that last year, passing an amendment that prevents these back-door bailouts. (New York Post, Editorial, 12/10/15)

Rubio provision being credited "with shielding taxpayers from jittery health insurance companies that may be eyeing shaky bottom lines."

Marco Rubio's Republican presidential bid is getting a surprisingly big boost from a little-known legislative tweak he helped tuck into last year's spending bill — one that ObamaCare critics are crediting with shielding taxpayers from jittery health insurance companies that may be eyeing shaky bottom lines. The provision, similar to one he's pushing this year, prohibits billion-dollar bailouts for private insurers under the Affordable Care Act. (Fox News, 12/1/15)

FACT: Some people talk about ending ObamaCare, Marco does something about it.

Rubio "has something not even Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) can claim: a major victory against the Affordable Care Act."

This is a very meaningful win that is taking a while to really see the effects of. Now that it is visible, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) has something not even Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) can claim: a major victory against the Affordable Care Act. That so many insurance companies are wanting to drop out now is a sign that this was never a sustainable program in the first place, and solidifies the argument that it could never save money. (RedState, 11/24/15)

"So for all the Republican talk about dismantling the Affordable Care Act, one Republican presidential hopeful has actually done something toward achieving that goal." (The New York Times, 12/9/15)

"Only Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) can claim to have done something tangible to hobble, maybe permanently, Obamacare."

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) forced a shutdown over it. Every GOP presidential candidate vows to repeal it. But only Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) can claim to have done something tangible to hobble, maybe permanently, Obamacare. (Jennifer Rubin, The Washington Post, 11/25/15)

FACT: Marco led the fight against the ObamaCare bailouts for over 2 years.

"Rubio in 2013 went on the warpath . . ."

The angst in the industry centers on an obscure program in the healthcare law known as 'risk corridors' that was designed to shield insurers against losses. Rubio in 2013 went on the warpath against the program, decrying it as a 'taxpayer bailout.' He penned op-eds against it, testified about it as the star witness at a House Oversight Committee hearing and even made his case to top House Republicans like then-Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). (The Hill, 11/24/15)

FACT: Marco rallied conservatives to the cause.

In October 2014, it was Marco who led an effort of Senate conservatives to warn Speaker Boehner about the ObamaCare bailout fund. Check it out HERE.

FACT: When the House took up risk corridors, they called upon Marco.

Chairman Darrell Issa in February 2014: Marco "has proposed a bill to repeal the Risk Corridors in the president's healthcare law" that is "a timely proposal."

Therefore, we are not neutral observers. But CBO is a neutral observer. And I believe that the testimony that's going to be given today by our distinguished senator from Florida, Senator Rubio, who has proposed a bill to repeal the Risk Corridors in the president's healthcare law comes both with a timely proposal and with a recognition that after you guarantee that insurance companies cannot lose money, it is little surprise that when the president makes changes which will adversely affect the profit projects of insurance companies, you hear not a word. (Rep. Darrell Issa, House Committee On Oversight And Government Reform, Hearing, 2/6/14)

December 3, 2015 — Rubio: We Need A Conservative President Who Will Sign This Obamacare Repeal And Replace Bill Into Law
December 3, 2015 — Rubio On Senate Floor: No ObamaCare Bailout For Health Insurance Companies
November 24, 2015 — Rubio: Congress Must Prevent ObamaCare's Taxpayer-Funded Bailout of Health Insurers in Omnibus Appropriations Bill
November 19, 2015 — Rubio: No ObamaCare Bailout For Health Insurance Companies
October 2, 2015 — Rubio Saves Taxpayers Over $2.5 Billion In Obamacare Bailout Funds, Calls For Taking Option Off The Table For Good
May 1, 2015 — As ObamaCare Bailout Possibility Grows, Rubio Calls For Repeal Of Bailout Program
January 8, 2015 — Rubio Introduces Bill Preventing Taxpayer-Funded Bailouts Of Insurance Companies Under ObamaCare
December 10, 2014 — Rubio Comments On Obamacare Bailout Provisions
October 8, 2014 — Rubio, Colleagues To Boehner: We Must Protect Congressional Authority, Prohibit Obamacare Bailout
September 30, 2014 — Rubio: GAO Makes Clear ObamaCare Bailouts Can't Occur Without Congressional Approval
August 14, 2014 — Palm Beach Post: Florida Blue chief: GOP attacks on insurance 'bailout' unfair
August 8, 2014 — ICYMI: Rubio: More ObamaCare Woes: Congress Must Act To Block Health Insurance Bailout
April 1, 2014 — Rubio Introduces Legislation To Hold Administration Accountable, Protect Taxpayers From ObamaCare Bailout
February 5, 2014 — Rubio: It Is Time For Obama, Administration To Level With Taxpayers (House Hearing)
January 28, 2014 — Momentum Grows For Rubio-Griffin ObamaCare Taxpayer Bailout Prevention Legislation
January 17, 2014 — Rubio Warns Of Potential Taxpayer Funded Bailout Under ObamaCare On Senate Floor
January 13, 2014 — ICYMI: Rubio: Sebelius, Congress Should Take ObamaCare Bailout Off The Table
January 10, 2014 — Rubio: Clear Signs Emerge That An ObamaCare Bailout Is Coming
November 27, 2013 — ICYMI: Rubio: Prevent Blank Check Bailouts Under ObamaCare
November 19, 2013 — Momentum Builds For ObamaCare Bailout Prevention Bill
November 19, 2013 — Rubio Introduces Bill Preventing Taxpayer-Funded Bailouts Of Insurance Companies Under ObamaCare