The Obamacare repeal dream lives on.
Republican Sens. Orrin Hatch (UT) and Lamar Alexander (TN) re-introduced legislation Tuesday that would eliminate the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate.
“This legislation we are introducing today is simple: it strikes the individual mandate, so we can instead find ways of providing people with health care, but in a manner that doesn’t run counter to our constitutional framework of limited government,” Hatch said in a statement.
Although the mandate faces implementation obstacles, proponents and opponents broadly agree that President Obama’s re-election secured its survival. It has also withstood challenges in the Supreme Court and at the ballot box.
The re-introduction of the American Liberty Restoration Act is a sign that the conservative base remains fiercely opposed to the requirement that Americans purchase insurance or pay higher taxes, which takes effect in 2014. The market-based reform idea originated in conservative policy circles and was first enacted by then-Gov. Mitt Romney in Massachusetts in 2006.
On Jan. 5, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) introduced a bill in the House to fully repeal the ACA. Over the last two years the Republican-led House has held more than 30 votes to repeal or weaken the health care reform law.
Sahil Kapur
Sahil Kapur is a congressional reporter for TPM. He previously covered politics and public policy for numerous publications including The Guardian and The Huffington Post. He can be reached at sahil [at] talkingpointsmemo.com.
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