Virginia Senate bills say no to requiring health insurance

by Rosalind S. Helderman
Washington Post
February 2, 2010

RICHMOND — Virginia’s Democratic-controlled state Senate passed measures Monday that would make it illegal to require individuals to purchase health insurance, a direct challenge to the party’s efforts in Washington to reform health care.

The bills, a top priority of Virginia’s “tea party” movement, were approved 23 to 17 as five Democrats who represent swing areas of the state joined all 18 Republicans in the chamber in backing the legislation.

The votes came less than a week after President Obama implored Democrats in Washington not to abandon their health-care efforts, urging them in his State of the Union address not to “run for the hills” on the issue.

But the action in Virginia, a state that backed Obama in 2008, could indicate that the president is failing to reassure members of his own party that current reform efforts remain worthwhile. The votes also suggest that Democrats on the state level fear that supporting health-care reform could be politically damaging, and their action could put pressure on members of the state’s congressional delegation who have been behind the effort…

…Proponents of the Virginia measures said Congress would overstep the bounds of its constitutional authority if it required the purchase of private insurance…

The article continues at Washington Post.

Update: LibertyMaven writes, “…The fight is not over though. I highlight the word “individual” above because it worries me. Does this mean the federal government can mandate family coverage?…”

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