Will Congress be forced to live by the same set of rules when it comes to health insurance?

It is a sad commentary on our political system when a lawmaker has to file suit in federal court to enforce the law. But earlier this year, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., did just that. He filed suit in federal court “to make Congress live by the letter of the health care law it imposed on...

It is a sad commentary on our political system when a lawmaker has to file suit in federal court to enforce the law. But earlier this year, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., did just that. He filed suit in federal court “to make Congress live by the letter of the health care law it imposed on the rest of America.”

The Affordable Care Act, or ACA, commonly known as ObamaCare, calls on lawmakers and their staffs to join the ObamaCare individual health insurance exchanges. In these exchanges, lawmakers would not be able to continue to receive taxpayer-funded subsidies that pay for much of their health insurance premiums. But the Obama administration unilaterally changed the law when it allowed the Office of Personnel Management, or OPM, to issue rules allowing members and their staffs the option of enrolling in the small business insurance exchange and, in the cases of some committee and leadership office staffers, be exempt altogether, keeping their federal coverage.

By enrolling in the District of Columbia’s Health Link Exchange, lawmakers can continue to receive the generous premium subsidies that are not allowed in the individual exchanges.

Because of the special OPM rule, lawmakers were able to enroll in the small business exchange, which is supposed to be restricted to employers with 50 or fewer employees, as a way of getting around the law. This is one example of the special treatment for politicians who have forced millions into the ObamaCare exchanges while avoiding the ObamaCare experience themselves.

While this lawsuit, if successful, will not have a direct impact on the ACA, it would send a vey strong message to lawmakers. If Obamacare is good enough for the American people, then it is good enough for the people who work for them.

If congressional lawmakers liked their health insurance plan and wanted to keep it, they should have read what was in ObamaCare before passing it.