After the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling last week on the
Affordable Care Act, you might assume that states within the U.S., including
Virginia, would finally see the writing on the wall and begin implementation of
the act, but this would unfortunately not be the case.
Virginia Republicans say they do not intend on putting the
Affordable Care Act reforms into place until after the upcoming elections this
fall, laying down a political gauntlet that the Democratic Party of Virginia
will have to respond to.[1]
Republicans in Virginia are going to ride out the fall
elections to determine whether or not their party is in a stronger position in
the U.S. Congress and the White House. The ultimate goal of the Republican
Party as a whole is of course to overturn President Obama’s Affordable Care
Act.[2]
Virginia Senator Donald McEachin (D-Henrico) responded, “I
think that’s derelict of duty.” Indeed, but now how will the Democratic Party
push the Republican Party to implement the Affordable Care Act?
The gamble could pay off for the Republican Party if they win
enough extra members in the U.S. Congress and a presidential victory to repeal
the Affordable Care Act.
However, since federal law mandates that almost every
American purchase health insurance and that states establish insurance
exchanges that guarantee private health coverage is available to every American[3],
holding off until the last moment to set the process in motion could put Virginia
in danger of running afoul of federal law and denying Virginians the benefits
of President Obama’s health care reform.
Even though Gov. McDonnell claims that “We will do what we
think is right for the citizens of Virginia,”[4]
his previous track record on this front doesn’t inspire much confidence.[5]
The message of the GOP is clear, we’ll follow the laws of[6]
the land, but only if we agree with the laws being signed and passed. This
doesn’t sound like a recipe for a functioning republic to me.
[1] http://washingtonexaminer.com/virginia-republicans-stall-work-on-health-care-law/article/2501102
[2] http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/romney-gop-leaders-pledge-repeal-health-care-law/story?id=16671483
[3] http://www.healthcare.gov/law/index.html
[4] http://washingtonexaminer.com/virginia-republicans-stall-work-on-health-care-law/article/2501102
[5] http://www.examiner.com/article/mcdonnell-s-uranium-mining-study-a-subversion-of-the-democratic-process-virgi
[6] http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/romney-gop-leaders-pledge-repeal-health-care-law/story?id=16671483
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