One cannot begrudge the affirmation of the right of all Americans to health care coverage as provided in the Affordable Health Care Act, upheld this morning by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Washington Post offers complete coverage of the decision and how the provisions of this landmark healthcare act will continue to unfold:
The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of President Barack Obama’s health care law, including the most disputed part: the mandate that virtually all Americans have health insurance or pay a fine. The mandate was upheld under the federal government’s power to levy taxes.
The ruling put some limits on the law’s plan to expand the Medicaid insurance program for the poor, a joint effort of the federal government and states. It says the U.S. government cannot threaten to withhold a state’s entire Medicaid allotment if it doesn’t participate in the expansion.
Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the court’s four liberal justices — Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor — to form the 5-4 majority.
The problem is the healthcare tax is not really a tax. A tax is based on the creation of income. Here, people are being taxed for a product they may or may not use.
ReplyDeleteDid Obama just force us to have more transparency than he practices himself?
Hi Alessandro,
ReplyDeleteYou raise a good question. But at the same time, I vaguely recall candidate Obama railing against candidate Hillary Clinton's support of the individual mandate. She argued that it was the only way to make a viable health care plan work.