re: #14 lawhawk

The individual mandate is the penalty portion of the package to expand the pool of people paying into the insurance plan. As written, the mandate requires almost everyone to get insurance or face a fine - $95 in 2014, $325 in 2015 and $695 in 2016 (with a maximum of $2,250 for a family). There is an exemption for low-income people.

This portion could be struck down, the the remaining portions of the bill are unaffected - such as the expanded requirements that the insurers cover to age 26, preexisting conditions, etc.

Also expect this to be appealed to the US Supreme Court (it should go without saying). Other circuits will likely take a different tact, but in the end I think it will be upheld on Commerce Clause grounds because Congress does have the power to affect interstate commerce (Art 1, Sec 8) and Congress has previously imposed requirements on insurers nationally. It’s an incremental change that is within Congressional power under the Constitution.

That doesn’t mean that I agree with the personal mandate provisions, which essentially tax millions of people who have made the decision not to pay for insurance. Congress could disguise it under different terms, but the penalty provisions and enforcement are through the tax code. It represents a significant tax hike if these people opt not to buy insurance. It’s a real hike in costs to these individuals in the wishful thinking of bending the cost curve for services by expanding the pool of health care consumers to include those in good health who do not normally seek health care.

Why not just be honest about it then, and say we’re going to tack on a couple percentage points on everyone’s tax bill to pay for universal care? That would probably be just as much money (I don’t have time to check this) and would result in the same result with less obfuscation.