What happens if Obama removes the "mandatory health care or pay fine" clause?

Question

The opponents have lost their argument in court then. They can't block the whole thing, they are only sticking to some parts of Obamacare. Obama being as intelligent as he is, will still figure a way out to get it successfully passed. He isn't like Bush whose efforts often failed -- like iraq, hurricane katrina, social security privatization, etc etc

Answer 1

The problem is we have people showing up in emergency rooms without coverage that are putting their costs on others, and ruining their own lives with bankruptcy at the same time. The mandate is a way to negate both of these problems.



If it gets struck down, fine, but something equivalent will take it's place because the current system is broken.

Answer 2

Congress can not just remove that clause, they would have to write a new bill, and that would have to pass both Houses of Congress and be signed by the President, that is why the repeal by the house. That Florida judges ruling means a whole hell of a lot, now in 27 states they don't have to follow the law until another court over rules the Federal Judges decision, either be it the appeals court or the Supreme Court, but as of today, the law is no longer in effect in those 27 states. (2 separate court cases.)

Answer 3

Very important to point out is that all insurance under the health reform law is private. Its merely the creation of exchanges and rules insurers have to follow, and a means of creating taxes to pay for those who don't have insurance to have private insurance. Those taxes come from everyday people, but mostly come from insurance companies themselves. The whole reason to put a mandatory coverage law onto the reform bill was to appease insurance accuarial l industry (underwriters). The idea is if insurance companies have to cover the very sick the only way to turn a profit is to cover the healthy, just like car insurance companys need to do, so they got Obama to push for 100% coverage. That way the healthy don't opt out and the sick don't force themselves on the insurance companies. The truth is this idea was a republican idea and it was porposed quite some time ago. So yes, it might get struck out, but the funny thing is it would only hurt the rich companies and the GOP to have it lose. So my thinking is something will happen and the GOP will get told by the donors to fix it and the case will slide out. The GOP is just putting on a show for us right now.



The bill does have a clause so voiding out portions only voids out those portions. Speicifically the individual mandate is separate element of the bill, and can be removed. I mean the court ruled DADT was illegal but didn't have to shut down the US Military. The court ruled part of Social Security was illegal, and the rest survived.

Answer 4

Unfortunately, Judge Roger Vinson ruled that as a result of the unconstitutionality of the "individual mandate" that requires people to buy insurance, the entire law must be declared void. This was only the 4th lawsuit out of 26 and the rulings have been 2 yes and 2 no. We will see what the other rulings are and then which ones continue up the chain to the high court. Then the vote will be split between the cons and libs and the tie-breaker will be the centrist justice.

Answer 5

Obama can't remove anything. That would require an entirely new bill making it's way through the legislative process. As it stands right now, Obamacare is Unconstitutional and is not the law of the land until this ruling is overturned (if that happens). A stay could be granted, pending the appeals process, but one has not been issued yet, so the bill right now is null and void.

Answer 6

What's upsetting is that this was a way that would allow the insurance companies to win too. Everybody would have won. Insurance companies would have had access to 30+ million more customers, and the sick would have gotten coverage. The dems but a clause in the bill that each of the components can survive on their own, so Repubs are really just screwing themselves.

Answer 7

But then it won't work the way it is intended. There will not be a pool of payers covering costs for those unable to get insurance, and then no one would have to get health care coverage until they got sick, and the insurance companies couldn't turn them down, which would cost the companies billions. So the costs would skyrocket.



And I think that way too many are going to see the commerce clause in the constitution is going to have big play in this one.

Answer 8

There is also no effective healthcare reform.



Without the individual mandate (a long term Republican policy and the crux of thier 1993 healthcare reform bill), but with a law against refusing people due to pre-existing conditions, millions of Americans will wait until they get sick and then sign up for insurance. The result will be insurance prices sky-rocketing.

Answer 9

If Obama removes the "mandatory health care or pay fine" clause literally 100% of the Democrat caucus will demand impeachment proceedings.

By the way, according to its AUTHORS, "the whole thing" is illegal. Congressional Democrats said so, adding clarifications like "so what?" and "most of what we do is illegal."

.

"And if congress removes that clause, then?" There is no Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. ALL of it is entirely dependent on FORCE.

Answer 10

"They can't block the whole thing, they are only sticking to some parts of Obamacare. Obama being as intelligent as he is, will still figure a way out to get it successfully passed."





I imagine Obama is intelligent enough to know that he won't get anything passed behind the back of the American people, especially with a Republican House - that is, ObamaCare.

Answer 11

He can't. Obama can not rewrite the legislation "on the fly". The Florida judge said the clause is not severable from the legislation. We'll have to wait on the Supreme Court ruling.

Answer 12

Disaster will be the result, because the law also prohibits pre-existing condition exclusions.



Now, it can be argued that Congress did not have the authority to make that part of the law, either. So it would be vitally important to either strike down that part, or for Congress to amend that part out of the law.

Answer 13

The health care insurance lobby will crap their pants and be pissed off at every republican they funnel money to.

Republicans in Congress LOVE the mandatory insurance concept, they just don't want you to think they do.

Answer 14

The lion share of it will collapse. As long as the people have a choice they will choose the superior private market health insurance.

Answer 15

The Individual Mandate is "non-severable". For those that don't read, that means the entire bill/law is null if any part of the bill is found to be invalid. Thus, the Pensacola Federal Judge's decision yesterday.

Answer 16

he can't, he already signed the whole bill. Only Congress can change it



and Congress won't change just that part because the House and Senate won't agree on how to change it

Answer 17

He cannot do that. He does not have line item veto power even if he did not already sign the bill.

Insurers would also hold back their campaign contributions and he would quickly put it back in.

Answer 18

The funding for Obama-care falls apart...and the entire law bankrupts America (even more than it is already)

Answer 19

How did Bush fail hurricane katrina? The reason so many died is because they live under sea level, and tried to hold out against a catagory 5 hurricane. Obama continued Iraq, and extended unenployment to 99 weeks. Why get a job?

Answer 20

congress WON'T