IRS Obamacare Tax Contract

[piasabird]

What do you think should happened to this Canadian IT firm that handled the botched healthcare website?

Well the IRS decided to hire them to calculate the Obamacare TAX.

Seven months after federal officials fired CGI Federal for its botched work on Obamacare website Healthcare.gov, the IRS awarded the same company a $4.5 million IT contract for its new Obamacare tax program, the Daily Caller reported.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.Newsmax.com/Newsfront/IR...are-hired/2015/01/22/id/620242/#ixzz3Pl43HCvT
Urgent: Should Obamacare Be Repealed? Vote Here Now!

So does this give you confidence in our government or the IRS? Whoever hired these people needs to go to jail!

 

[CPA]

Get ready for an onslaught of criticism for linking to Newsmax, regardless if the story is true or shows the incompetence of our leadership, once again.

 

[Pipeline 1010]

Get ready for an onslaught of criticism for linking to Newsmax, regardless if the story is true or shows the incompetence of our leadership, once again.

It's not incompetence. It is very competently hooking up their buddies at the expense of people they don't give a crap about (us).

 

[theeedude]

Running out of sh!t to criticize Obamacare for? When prediction after doomsday prediction fails to materialize, I don't blame you.

 

[nickqt]

Running out of sh!t to criticize Obamacare for? When prediction after doomsday prediction fails to materialize, I don't blame you.

I'm still waiting for the DeathPanels™ to start hunting people down. Wasn't there like a Vice Presidential Candidate of, uh, one party or another, who mentioned those?

 

[Fern]

I'm still waiting for the DeathPanels™ to start hunting people down. Wasn't there like a Vice Presidential Candidate of, uh, one party or another, who mentioned those?

We've always had "death panels". We always will.

You can't allow individuals to approve payment of any procedure they want. There has to be an outside approval process.

The argument was whether they exist at the private insurance level, allowing an opportunity to appeal, or exist at the fed govt, likely allowing no such opportunity.

Fern

 

[nickqt]

We've always had "death panels". We always will.

You can't allow individuals to approve payment of any procedure they want. There has to be an outside approval process.

The argument was whether they exist at the private insurance level, allowing an opportunity to appeal, or exist at the fed govt, likely allowing no such opportunity.

Fern

And when, exactly, do government death panels make decisions regarding health insurance now that the ACA is in effect...besides the obvious now that the ACA prohibits benevolent health insurance companies from retroactively cancelling policies, that is.

 

[Fern]

And when, exactly, do government death panels make decisions regarding health insurance now that the ACA is in effect...besides the obvious now that the ACA prohibits benevolent health insurance companies from retroactively cancelling policies, that is.

As it stands now the status quo remains. I.e., it is the hands of the private insurers. According to Jonathan Grubber the plan is to move it into the fed govt's hands.

Fern

 

[nickqt]

As it stands now the status quo remains. I.e., it is the hands of the private insurers. According to Jonathan Grubber the plan is to move it into the fed govt's hands.

Fern

So in essence, there are no gov't death panels, and in fact the ACA, by banning the retroactive cancellation of health insurance policies, has decreased how much private insurance can play the role of death panels.

Sounds about right.

Gruber has said a lot of things. He helped Rmoney enact Rmoneycare in MA, and was an advisor to Obama regarding data.

Where does he say that the gub'mint is planning on taking over the entire health insurance industry? The things that he has said revolves around how the ACA has healthy people paying in, and sick people taking out...which is, of course, how health insurance is supposed to work.

 

[Victorian Gray]

And they were awarded a bigger contract by the Navy.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repo...-billion-us-navy-it-contract/article22417505/

Did people think that a large international company (with a 30 year history of working with the US govt.) would fold because they got fired from one contract?

 

[master_shake_]

Running out of sh!t to criticize Obamacare for? When prediction after doomsday prediction fails to materialize, I don't blame you.

death panels are coming!

 

[1prophet]

And they were awarded a bigger contract by the Navy.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repo...-billion-us-navy-it-contract/article22417505/

Did people think that a large international company (with a 30 year history of working with the US govt.) would fold because they got fired from one contract?

Selected to compete

CGI Group’s U.S. subsidiary, CGI Federal, is joining six other companies selected by the U.S. navy to compete for up to $2.5-billion (U.S.) worth of technology contracts over the next eight years.


The work involves the standardization and improvement of the computer systems aboard U.S. navy ships.


Several ships have been upgraded so far and the navy expects about 20 to 30 ships will be upgraded annually.

Too big to fail or too well connected?

GG has to do what Harper says. GG is in Harper's pocket; millions and millions of dollars at stake for GG and his lawyer daughter Debbie:

re our GG: While David Johnston's daughter Debbie, a lawyer, was working for the Department of Justice Canada... CGI, the company David Johnston was on the board of directors of, was awarded a major $14.5 million dollar contract with Department of Justice Canada, which added to the more than a million dollars a year compensation David Johnston received for his position as a member of the board of directors of CGI, which was reported on Forbes website but then was removed after he became Governor General, I assume to conceal his connection to CGI as this important piece of information was left out of the mainstream media news about Harper appointing David Johnston as Canada's new Governor General...

http://www.cgi.com/en/department-justice-and-cgi-sign-five-year-deal

http://www.bulletin.uwaterloo.ca/2001/dec/18tu.html

...Harper and his gang have awarded CGI more than a billion in government contracts to date, while it's reasonable to assume David Johnston still owns substantial stock in CGI, or that his family members do.


http://newsrelease.uwaterloo.ca/news.php?id=1233 ...Harper awarded CGI billion+ in gov contracts; assume GGDJ still owns substantial stock in CGI

But it's all OK as long as it isn't some evil Koch, Romney, Palin, etc. conservative type one percenter.

 

[nickqt]

But it's all OK as long as it isn't some evil Koch, Romney, Palin, etc. conservative type one percenter.

I don't particularly have a problem with companies like KBR that Cheney was a exec/board member getting contracts. Most of the time these companies are large enough and have the experience to perform the work.

It's disillusioning to dirty libruls like myself that the whole MIC exists at all, nevermind which specific companies are siphoning hundreds of billions of dollars a year on making bombs or the infrastructure to deliver those bombs, while the rest of the country (minus DC, Manhattan and Silicon Valley) is hollowed out as if the US just doesn't have the $ to invest into the people who actually live outside of those three places.

When the country as a whole is directed outward to play Empire, the inside is neglected. Whether you want to point at libruul Detroit, or conservative West Virginia.

 

[Victorian Gray]

Selected to compete

No, got a contract:

"CGI has been guaranteed one contract worth less than $10-million, but must bid for additional work."

 

[DCal430]

No worst than what happened in California. A company was selected to build a bridge and ended going over billion dollars over budget, and over 5 years delayed. The same company was later selected to build the bay bridge, and again years delayed and this time many many billions over budget. This same company constantly goes many times over budget on multiple state projects, but they are constantly allowed to bid on projects.

 

[OutHouse]

No worst than what happened in California. A company was selected to build a bridge and ended going over billion dollars over budget, and over 5 years delayed. The same company was later selected to build the bay bridge, and again years delayed and this time many many billions over budget. This same company constantly goes many times over budget on multiple state projects, but they are constantly allowed to bid on projects.

Built in China...

 

[boomerang]

It may be important to remember that once tax dollars are collected the funds are out of our control because that's the way we allow the government to operate. If they want to hire a firm that has shown they are incapable of performing the work required of them, just smile and nod your head in a knowing fashion. We allow them to do this and hey, it's just money! China is still lending so what's the big deal?

We can always confiscate the wealth of the rich if we find our backs against the wall. That will fix everything.

 

[K1052]

No worst than what happened in California. A company was selected to build a bridge and ended going over billion dollars over budget, and over 5 years delayed. The same company was later selected to build the bay bridge, and again years delayed and this time many many billions over budget. This same company constantly goes many times over budget on multiple state projects, but they are constantly allowed to bid on projects.

The Bay Bridge eastern span replacement debacle was a lot more complicated than that. Incompetence on management from Caltrans, meddling from numerous local politicians, lack of federal funding (which would have brought cost controls and Buy American provisions), finger pointing among the contractors and subs for substandard procedures/materials, and flat out bad timing for materials cost all contributed. It's basically the textbook example now for how not to finance/design/build a bridge in the modern era.

 

[WHAMPOM]

What do you think should happened to this Canadian IT firm that handled the botched healthcare website?

Well the IRS decided to hire them to calculate the Obamacare TAX.

Seven months after federal officials fired CGI Federal for its botched work on Obamacare website Healthcare.gov, the IRS awarded the same company a $4.5 million IT contract for its new Obamacare tax program, the Daily Caller reported.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.Newsmax.com/Newsfront/IR...are-hired/2015/01/22/id/620242/#ixzz3Pl43HCvT
Urgent: Should Obamacare Be Repealed? Vote Here Now!

So does this give you confidence in our government or the IRS? Whoever hired these people needs to go to jail!

Depends if they are receiving under the table payments to botch this job too.

 

[Darwin333]

No worst than what happened in California. A company was selected to build a bridge and ended going over billion dollars over budget, and over 5 years delayed. The same company was later selected to build the bay bridge, and again years delayed and this time many many billions over budget. This same company constantly goes many times over budget on multiple state projects, but they are constantly allowed to bid on projects.

Same thing here in Louisiana. We have had to go behind companies that walked off jobs because they ran out of money.

What they do is get 3 or 4 state contracts, start one job and deliver materials and bill for it. They use that money to start the next project and they do the same thing. By the time they have started the 3rd or 4th they don't have the money to complete the 1st project and will often either try to strongarm a change order for more money, walk off the job completely or do completely substandard work.

It costs the state easily 20 times (if not much more) the difference between my bid and his bid to hire me to come in and fix and/or finish the project and for some reason that I haven't figured out yet the state rarely hits their P&P bond. Great for my pocket but really piss poor for my tax dollars yet still to this day the state doesn't have a mechanism to exclude this contractor from bidding on state work. Most parish governments can at least do "by invite only" bids if they get enough bidders.

Eventually that company, which has virtually zero assets (I think they "rent" them from a company owned by one of the owners wifes or something), files bankruptcy and a new company with the exact same players and employees is bidding on work the very next day.

 

[Darwin333]

Depends if they are receiving under the table payments to botch this job too.

What company takes under the table payments to royally and very publicly screw the pooch???

 

[Fern]

So in essence, there are no gov't death panels, and in fact the ACA, by banning the retroactive cancellation of health insurance policies, has decreased how much private insurance can play the role of death panels.

No. Cancellations of polices and approval for specific procedures are two different things.

So
Gruber has said a lot of things. He helped Rmoney enact Rmoneycare in MA, and was an advisor to Obama regarding data.

Where does he say that the gub'mint is planning on taking over the entire health insurance industry? The things that he has said revolves around how the ACA has healthy people paying in, and sick people taking out...which is, of course, how health insurance is supposed to work.

I've already linked one his papers on the subject at least twice. Just look for the P&N thread I started earlier this month.

Fern

 

[nickqt]

No. Cancellations of polices and approval for specific procedures are two different things.

I know that. You used the concept of a health insurance company choosing to cover or not cover certain procedures as an analogy to death panels.

I stated correctly that because of the ACA, health insurance companies are now prohibited from retroactively cancelling a policy, meaning that the potential "death panel" ability of insurance companies have been restricted by the ACA.

I've already linked one his papers on the subject at least twice. Just look for the P&N thread I started earlier this month.

Fern

I know about what he has said.

He has said that voters are stupid (which they aren't) because they don't understand that the ACA requires healthy people to pay in while it's sick people who take out (through healthcare). The jist of it being that if people knew how the ACA (and health insurance in general) works they wouldn't have voted for Democrats.

The funny thing is that health insurance works because people pay in when healthy and its the sick people who take out more than they put in.

Of course, if we actually wanted to thoroughly reduce costs, we'd simply have a nationalized healthcare system, as that simply creates a massive health insurance policy with every citizen in it, meaning that hospitals/clinics/healthcare providers have to compete with each other by lowering costs to get business, rather than the citizens of the US being split up into thousands of different insurance policy groups that have far less market power to drive down prices.

Gruber isn't some ultra-Democrat. He's a MIT professor who helped Rmoney set up RMoneycare in MA. He also got paid for consulting with the ACA. I know who he is, what he said, and the context.

 

[5to1baby1in5]

An IL congressman's gotcha covered. He wrote a letter.

Officials at the Internal Revenue Service spent a large amount of time trudging up to Capitol Hill in 2014 so that various Republican committee chairmen in the House of Representatives could berate them over the targeting of some conservative not for profits in the run-up to the 2012 election. It seems likely they’d have preferred to fly under lawmakers’ radar in the 114th Congress.

If that’s what they wanted, spending more than $4.5 million to hire the same contractor that botched the rollout of the Healthcare.gov website in 2013 probably wasn’t the best move. Hiring CGI Federal to provide “critical functions” related to the further implementation of the Affordable Care Actc was practically asking for a congressional investigation.

On Friday, Rep. Pete Roskam (R-IL), who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee’s Oversight panel, did what any self-respecting Republican in his place would do. He sent an incredulous-sounding letter to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen asking what, exactly, the agency was thinking.

“As you know, in January 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services fired CGI Federal after its disastrous rollout of the HealthCare.gov website,” Roskam wrote. “Shortly thereafter, Massachusetts followed suit, firing CGI for its poor performance developing the state health exchange website. Governor Deval Patrick called CGI Federal a ‘disappointing partner.’ In August 2014, Vermont also fired CGI Federal for its ‘unacceptable’ work creating its state exchange website. I am concerned that just months after the HHS and Massachusetts firings, the IRS selected the same contractor to provide critical technology services related to the administration of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.”

Roskam demanded that the IRS provide his subcommittee with the contract between the agency and CGI Federal, as well as the bids submitted by competitors, and the agency’s statement of the requirements for granting the contract.

He also asked for “a description of when and how the IRS decided to hire CGI Federal, including the names of all IRS personnel involved in the decision-making process and a description of their roles in the process; all internal communications, including, but not limited to, e-mail correspondence and memoranda, regarding the IRS’s decision to hire CGI Federal; and a description of the controls the IRS has in place for this project to ensure that the problems associated with Healthcare.gov and the state exchange websites do not arise with this project.”

Republicans in Congress have been starving the IRS of resources for years, and in a statement separate from the letter, Roskam suggested that moves like the hiring of CGI Federal justify the funding cuts.

“The American people should know why the IRS spent millions of taxpayer dollars to hire the same company responsible for the botched Healthcare.gov rollout. From an agency clamoring for more funding, this isn’t a confidence-inspiring use of resources.”

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2015/01/23/IRS-Hires-Same-Contractor-Bungled-Obamacare-Rollout

 

[Brainonska511]

Eventually that company, which has virtually zero assets (I think they "rent" them from a company owned by one of the owners wifes or something), files bankruptcy and a new company with the exact same players and employees is bidding on work the very next day.

I'm surprised no one has bothered to go after them for defrauding taxpayers. I'm sure some upstart state AG could shut that crap down pronto if someone actually wanted to do something about it.