In March of next year, the U.S. Supreme Court will REVIEW THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT signed into law by President Obama. Not the whole law, mind you, just the mandate requiring all Americans to have health insurance. For example, one Florida official suggests such a mandate threatens personal liberty:
Americans are mandated to purchase certain forms of insurance already, such as liability insurance for drivers or earthquake insurance for Californians. Opponents of the health insurance mandate argue that those other mandates are not the same. They say that we don’t have to own a home or drive a car in this country, so we should be able to wiggle out of health insurance coverage as well.
But in order for this logic to work, they would have to figure out a way to avoid participating in American health care before they avoid paying for insurance. See, this is the real tyranny coming down on the anti-Affordable Care folks. The potential to get hurt is very real in our lives, and so is the potential to be cared for by the healthcare industry.
God forbid, we could choke at a restaurant. We could get in a serious auto accident. We could get hurt on the job and be required to visit an emergency room. There’s not a lot of opportunity to opt out of care while you’re severely bleeding or unconscious. But there is a way to avoid paying for medical treatment. Several ways, in fact.
That's the point. People need health care all the time for unexpected and costly problems, but since many are not insured, they duck payment or declare poverty. That cost then shifts to the hospitals, doctors’ offices, and eventually, the insured patients who visit those health care providers. All of which makes this a matter of national commerce.
Hey, I don’t like buying more insurance, but I can’t think of a way to guarantee that I’ll never use health care without paying. Can any of you?
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