While most people are more inclined to pay close attention to who will win the top spot on American Idol, a more important contest will take place next week, the outcome of which will affect every American.
The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on whether the The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that became law in 2010-referred to by its opponents as “Obamacare”-is constitutional.
Removing all the political hot air for or against the bill, the Supreme Court is being asked to answer a single question: Can the government force individuals to buy a certain product?
In our opinion, using common knowledge of how government works, there seems to be nothing in the Constitution that grants the federal government the power to force the American people to buy health insurance. Moreover, the government does not have the authority to fine those who do not make such a purchase.
Those who approve of the concepts of the health care reform law argue that the Commerce Clause in the Constitution gives Congress the authority to regulate the sale of goods and services, including health insurance. But while Congress has the authority to regulate commerce, by all accounts, it does not have the authority to force people to engage in it.
Congress can force those who enter the car market to purchase insurance, but it wouldn’t make sense to require pedestrians to buy car insurance simply in order to lower prices for current drivers. Why is a different standard being applied to health insurance?
There is no doubt that medical coverage is important-and incredibly costly. And there is no doubt that the rising cost of health care needs to be addressed in some way. But introducing new mandates to force companies and people to buy their own insurance seems to be a case of the cure being worse than the illness.
As the cost of health care keep spiraling upward, more employees are being forced to contribute to their health plans. And yet, many companies have been forced to stop providing health benefits because the costs keep going up. If companies are forced to spend money they don’t have on health insurance, and their income drops, wouldn’t that lead to more job losses?
Meanwhile, spending on Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security continues to balloon; this country spends about one-tenth of its gross domestic product on these programs, and that is expected to double by 2055.
The health care reform law would expand the Medicaid program; an estimated 20 million people will join the Medicaid rolls by 2019. This is pouring gasoline on an economic fire.
Emergency rooms in American hospitals are being overwhelmed by uninsured patients who cannot afford or refuse to pay for medical care. The health care reform law would cover these patients, but at an extreme cost to the taxpayers.
It is said that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and this health care law is clearly one of those cases. The Supreme Court’s decision, expected to come by June, will not only determine whether our economy sinks or swims by this law, but also potentially set a precedent as to how far our government can go in determining the requirements of its people.
This issue is too important to be ignored any longer.
