Kansas Becomes Latest State to Defend Health Care Choice
By: Health Insurance
Submitted: 2009-10-28 15:00:50 | Word Count: 521
The American Legislative
Exchange Council (ALEC), the nation's largest individual membership
association of state legislators, congratulates Kansas Representatives Peggy
Mast and Brenda Landwehr and Kansas Senator Mary Pilcher Cook for announcing
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their intent to introduce a constitutional amendment to protect the right of
individuals to make their own health care choices. Kansas now becomes the 19th
state where legislators have introduced, or will introduce, legislation
modeled after ALEC's Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091014/ALECLOGO)
"Federal health care reform efforts may include a requirement that individuals
purchase health insurance, and a so called 'public option' which will result
in less choices for consumers and new government mandates," said Iowa
Representative Linda Upmeyer, minority whip, family nurse practitioner, and
chair of ALEC's Health and Human Services Task Force. "Americans don't need
more government mandates, we need real consumer choice. ALEC's Freedom of
Choice in Health Care Act is designed to protect individual rights and our
freedom to purchase health insurance of our choice, or not," she added.
The Kansas constitutional amendment preserves the rights of individuals to pay
directly for medical care--something not allowed in single-payer countries
like Canada--and prohibits any individual from being penalized for not
purchasing government-defined insurance. Any state attempt to require an
individual to purchase health insurance--or forbid an individual from
purchasing services outside of the required health care system--would be
rendered unconstitutional. The measure may also cause a federalism clash if
Congress passes a law with either of these provisions.
Kansas now joins legislators in seven states (AK, GA, LA, MO, MS, NH, and UT)
that have already publicly announced their intention to file legislation to
protect their citizens from any health care mandates. Another 11 states have
already filed or pre-filed similar legislation (AZ, FL, IN, MN, ND, NM, MI,
OH, PA, WV, WY). Arizona's measure, which passed the legislature in June, will
be put before voters on the 2010 ballot.
"ALEC members in the states are also working to enact real health care reform
solutions that can--as President Obama has called for--increase competition,
reduce costs and expand coverage. These include allowing consumers to purchase
health insurance across state lines, providing tax relief for individuals to
purchase health insurance, and a cost-benefit review of any government
mandated insurance benefits," said Christie Herrera, director of ALEC's Health
and Human Services Task Force.
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is the nation's largest
nonpartisan, individual membership organization of state legislators.
