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One of the more controversial parts in the new health care reform bill law is the individual insurance mandate.  The mandate is as follows:  By 2014, everyone must purchase health insurance or face a $695 fine annually.  There will be exceptions for low-income people.

This part of the bill has caused a lot of controversy.  Some people have expressed feelings of discomfort, worry, and anger over the fact that the U.S. government can mandate individuals to purchase a good or service.  The idea, originally a Republican idea, has been around since the Clinton administration, and was introduced as an alternative to the plan President Clinton proposed in the 1990’s.  Mitt Romney, a Republican, signed the requirement into law as Massachusetts governor in 2006.   As soon as the recent health care legislation was passed, the idea of individual mandates was touted as another case of “big government.”  Additionally, several states have threatened to sue the federal government because of the mandate.

Newsflash:  There is no penalty for not buying health insurance!

What?  Why?  How, you ask?  If you watched the video above, you would see towards the end how Lawrence O’Donnell points out a section in the health care bill law that states what the penalty is for not paying the fine.

There is no penalty.

What does this mean?  The government actually can’t make you buy health insurance.  In 2014, if you choose not to purchase health insurance, you could pay a $695 fine, if you want.  If you choose not to though, nothing will happen to you!

You would be better off taking that $695, and making it rain in a strip club.  I’m sure the Republican National Committee knows a lot about that. ;0)

Tags: democrats, Health Care, insurance mandate, lawrence o'donnell, republicans

This entry was posted on Monday, April 5th, 2010 at 10:14 pm and is filed under Current Events, Politics, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.