Dear Friend,
On Monday, a federal judge in Virginia ruled that the individual mandate in the health care bill is unconstitutional. The individual mandate is one of the most key parts of the health care bill – it requires nearly all Americans to buy health insurance and gives the federal government the power to tax you if you don’t. I opposed this from the very start because mandating the purchase of health insurance is a gross overreach of the federal government, and according to U.S. District Court Judge Henry Hudson, it is also unconstitutional. This ruling is an important step forward toward repealing the law altogether.
Since I voted against the health care bill several months ago, I have been telling you about the impact that the legislation has had on families and on businesses. Every day the consequences have been well-documented. The support of the American public continues to evaporate and costs are clearly going up.
We cannot afford to pretend that this bill will work. The 112th Congress, which convenes in January, is an opportunity to start over and create reform that will reduce costs and improve access to health care. People want choice in their health care. I hope this ruling is the beginning of the end of the most unprecedented government intrusions into the private health care decisions that you – not the government –should make.
Sincerely,
Kay Granger