First of all, "The Factor" has established itself as the go-to news program if you want the facts about Obamacare. Our ratings this week have been stellar and we have been up against ferocious competition like the World Series.
Millions of Americans want facts not crazy political fanaticism and we are here to give them to you. According to the Kaiser Health News Service private insurance companies are canceling policies at a huge rate. In California, Kaiser Permanente has canceled half of its health insurance plans for individuals. Blue Shield of California has canceled 60 percent of its individual business. Independence Blue Cross in Philadelphia dropping 45 percent of its customers and Florida Blue has canceled 80 percent of individual policies. And that's just the beginning.
Estimates are that Americans who have individual health insurance policies will be cut at the rate of 50 percent.
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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you like your healthcare plan, you will be able to keep your healthcare plan -- period. No one will take it away no matter what.
GERRY KOMINSKI, DIRECTOR OF HEALTH POLICY OF UCLA: About half of the 14 million people who buy insurance on their own are not going to be able to keep the policies that they had previously.
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O'REILLY: So it is clear now that President Obama misinformed the country about the changes Obamacare would cause -- whether he did so intentionally is impossible to know. And we haven't even begun to see how group insurance policies will be affected. Remember about 160 million Americans get health insurance on their employers.
But if you confront some ardent Democrats about the situation, here is what you get.
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DEAN: We've got to blame the Republicans for some of this because they delayed everything they possibly could, threw as many monkey wrenches into the process as they could.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.
DEAN: And there's some success there.
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O'REILLY: And so let me get this straight. Dr. Dean is saying that because Republicans oppose Obamacare somehow the computer system doesn't work? I guess Republicans have some kind of magical power that's transmitted to the software allowing it not to function. That seems to be Dr. Dean's diagnosis.
It's becoming clear that Congress will have to act and even President Obama's most loyal supporters will have to accept that Obamacare is not ready. "Talking Points" expects a bipartisan bill that will delay much of the new law for a year. You may remember that we here at "The Factor" put forth that compromise way back before the government shutdown. Another reason for you guys to continue to watch the program.
And that's "The Memo."
- You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.
