Saving by Insurance

West Michigan lawmakers want state ban on possible federal mandate to carry health insurance

Two conservative West Michigan lawmakers are part of a growing movement that hopes to block national health care overhaul through state constitutional amendments.

The plan is to supersede a key element of the plans under discussion in Washington: requiring nearly everyone buy insurance or pay a penalty.

State Sen. Wayne Kuipers, R-Holland, says his proposed amendment to the Michigan Constitution 'asserts the right to independent health care' by saying no federal law can compel anyone to participate in a public or private health system.

'This resolution is about preserving freedom and personal choice,' Kuipers said.

State Rep. Justin Amash, R-Kentwood, has introduced a similar resolution in the state House.

'It would allow someone to opt out of a government sanctioned health care system, and it would protect your right to pay directly for lawful medical services,' Amash said.

Kuipers and Amash are members of the American Legislative Exchange Council, a Washington-based advocacy group for limited government. The New York Times reported that the council has talked about the amendments to lawmakers in more than a dozen states.

Supporters and opponents say the measures put states and the federal government on a collision course over which laws would prevail, not only in health care bit other issues, the Times said. Opponents and some constitutional scholars said the proposals probably would not pass muster in court.

Aside from Michigan, according to the New York Times, the idea has been presented in at least nine other states. It is in one stage or another in Florida, Minnesota and Ohio, while it has failed so far in Indiana, North Dakota, New Mexico, West Virginia and Wyoming. Lawmakers in Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana and Utah have said they will soon offer similar measures.

It seems to have advanced most in Arizona, where voters are scheduled to decide on it next year.

Kuipers said he hopes to gain approval in the Republican-majority Senate this year.

Health care insurance should be governed at a state level because state populations vary, Kuipers said.

'Michigan has a little heavier population than other states,' he said. 'If that's an issue in our state, and we believe it is, then we shouldn't rely on the federal level to resolve that.'

As a member of the Democratically controlled House, Amash acknowledged his chances of getting the proposed amendment on the ballot are slim.

Amash said he introduced the resolution not as a matter of states' rights, but individual rights.

'Basically, when someone else is paying for your medical costs, it leads to overspending on health care,' he said.

Amash said he's not sure he would push similar arguments for auto insurance or other mandatory coverages.

'My concern is more that when insurance acts as a system of pre-payment than actual insurance,' he said.