Fed Warns That ObamaCare Will Negatively Impact Hiring
A new report from the Federal Reserve suggests that ObamaCare may be negatively impacting employment. CNBC's John Carney reports on the Fed's latest Beige Book, a summary of anecdotal information on the economy collected by each of the district-level Federal Reserve Banks:
The Beige Book, which paints a picture of the economy by drawing on the contacts maintained by regional Fed banks with their local business communities, was prepared this time around by the Kansas City Federal Reserve. It's not usually considered to have any partisan tilt, although obviously the views it reports are those of the business sector (rather than, say, the labor unions).
"Employers in several Districts cited the unknown effects of the Affordable Care Act as reasons for planned layoffs and reluctance to hire more staff," the report says.
The Richmond Fed reports that employers in its area continued to point to the Affordable Care Act as "reasons for planned layoffs and reluctance to hire more staff."
The Dallas Fed contacts "noted concern that client companies are hiring the absolute minimum to get by due to uncertainty about the Affordable Care Act."
It's not just hiring that is being hurt by Obamacare, according to the Beige Book. Sales are also.
"Many District contacts commented on the expired payroll tax holiday and the Affordable Care Act as having restrained sales growth," the report says.
Carney says he finds a little bit of good news in the San Francisco branch's report that health providers expect increased demand for services as the major provisions of ObamaCare begin to kick in. I'm less confident that adding a new layer of health-industry friendly subsidies to our already distorted health services sector is something to cheer.