Virginia Legislature Votes to Ban Health Insurance Mandate
Feb. 12, 2010 – Challenging a key provision in federal health care reform efforts, a measure blocking potential federal health insurance mandates cleared the Virginia Legislature today and goes to Republican Governor Bob McDonnell for a likely signing.
Because both versions of federal health care reform legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate would require U.S. citizens to purchase health insurance coverage, several state legislatures are considering joining the Virginia Senate in passing bans on insurance mandates. And more than a dozen state attorneys general are questioning the Constitutionality of the federal government compelling U.S. citizens to engage in commerce by forcing them to purchase health insurance or be fined.
The Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate earlier voted 23-17 to approve measures making it illegal to force individual to purchase health insurance. The GOP-controlled Virginia House of Delegates today concurred with the Senate and forwarded the measure to McConnell, who is expected to sign the measure into law.
Although President Barack Obama overwhelmingly carried Virginia during the 2008 election, the recent backlash over Democrats’ efforts at national health care reform propelled McDonnell to an unexpected win in Virginia’s recent gubernatorial race as well as Republican Scott Brown’s recent U.S. Senate victory to occupy the seat held for decades by Democrat stalwart and health care reform crusader Sen. Edward Kennedy. With several recent public opinion polls showing a majority of American’s polled strongly oppose to current federal health care reform efforts, many state officials are feeling more emboldened at challenging federal health care reform efforts and mandates.
Five Virginia Senate Democrats joined 18 Republicans in voting to outlaw federal insurance mandates and directly challenge national health care reform efforts by Congressional Democrats and the President. Several other state legislatures are considering similar moves.
Strong opposition to national health care reform arose just as federal lawmakers were poised to approve sweeping reform of the nation’s $2.5 trillion-a-year health care industry. House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi essentially announced current health care reform efforts were dead now that Brown won the critical U.S. Senate seat and Democrats no longer have the votes necessary to prevent a Republican filibuster of health care bills in the U.S. Senate.
Pelosi said she does not have the votes necessary to approve the version of health care already passed in the U.S. Senate without amending it and sending it back to the Senate – at which point Republicans likely would initiate a filibuster Democrats would be powerless to prevent. Moderate House Democrats, such as Michigan’s Bart Stupak, oppose the abortion-funding measure in the bill already passed by the Senate. The version approved by the House does not allow federal funding of abortions, but Senate Republicans can filibuster that bill, as well. The Senate version also includes a tax on health care benefits opposed by House Democrats as being too hard on America’s middle class families.
Despite recent setbacks, Obama cited a lack of communication with U.S. voters as the reason for floundering national health care reform during his 70-minute State of the Union Address Jan. 27. But Obama suggested federal health care reform efforts would be renewed.
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