Apr 1, 2012

The individual health insurance mandate

This article from Bloomberg on the individual health insurance mandate is well worth a careful, thorough reading. ("Individual Mandate is Ryan Tax Credit by Other Name", Klein, Mar 28 2012.)

One thing I would add to the article:  a primary argument against the constitutionality of the mandate is that it forces people to enter a "stream of commerce" (health care).  But constitutionally, it is argued, the government can only regulate what people do if they choose to enter the stream of commerce.

The problem with this argument is that, by law, health care providers must provide a certain level of (emergency) care.  This is guaranteed to anyone who needs it, whether or not they can afford to pay.  Functionally, this is a form of "insurance" for everyone, including the uninsured.  Thus, long before the individual mandate, there were laws bringing everyone into the health care "stream of commerce".  The mandate simply carries those laws to their logical and fair conclusion, by requiring people who are receiving services to pay for them.

Therefore, a person who truly doesn't believe the government can force people to buy health insurance ought to be against laws which force the private market to provide it -- including emergency care.  Are any of Obamacare's critics prepared to go that far?