Should all Americans be requied by law to purchase health care? Should Americans be forced to use a government run health care system? Thirty states say No! Too bad, our state of California is NOT one of the 30 so far to protect citizens rights
Excerpts from the Wall Street Journal Feb. 20 2010:
These laws in 30 states which fight ObamaCare are generally called Health Care Freedom Acts.
Almost all the measures would make it illegal for the government at any level to require a citizen of the state to purchase health insurance. This would let Americans opt out of any federal “individual mandate” which makes people buy insurance or pay a tax, a la Massachusetts and both the House and Senate bills in Congress.
The bills would guarantee the right of residents to pay directly for health services without incurring penalties or fines. This means citizens could go outside any government-run system to purchase private treatment from the doctor or hospital of their choice. Often, the federal Medicare program doesn’t let doctors charge extra for specialized care.
If Congress passes some version of health legislation, the federal law may preempt these state laws. But states do have the right to provide extra protections beyond what federal law guarantees. Many states, for example, have freedom of speech protections that go beyond federal law.
The spectacle of “health-care freedom” legislation emerging in some 30 states suggests that voters and state lawmakers do understand that ObamaCare will alter the delivery of health care in ways that will limit choice and access.
