Insurance Mandate Essay -- Healthcare

1. (a) Why was the requirement of an insurance mandate for all citizens so important that it was supported by the Heritage Foundation a right wing conservative think tank, former Speaker of the House and presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, former Senate Majority Leader and presidential candidate Bob Dole and former Governor and presidential candidate Mitt Romney who made it a provision of the Massachusetts health care law? The requirement of an insurance mandate for all citizens was so important to conservatives â€Å"because it called for individual responsibility to address what economists call the "free-rider effect†Ã¢â‚¬  (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123670612). This keeps individuals who become injured from being able to get a free ride off the backs of other citizens who have insurance. The mandate would require individuals to take responsibility for their own health care needs. Having a mandate would also prevent premiums from escalating because an affordable policy would be easy to come by. The mandate likewise gives momentum for employers to offer health care benefits to their employees. Furthermore, today’s individual mandate â€Å"won’t allow high-deductible, lower cost plans that pay only for catastrophic illness. And some low-wage workers who get "mini-med" coverage through employers will likely have to buy more comprehensive policies† (http://www.politifact.com/georgia/article/2012/mar/26/health-care-debate-switching-sides-individual-mand/). No one would be able to purchase just a new bare necessities policy, and employers would most likely beef up their benefits packages to employees. Denying people coverage with pre-existing conditions will also not be allowed. This precedence would back up the co... ...rk: Longman, 2011. 348. Print. Young, Jeffrey. "Supreme Court Health Care Reform: Without Mandate, Nightmare Awaits Insurers, Uninsured." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 28 Mar. 2012. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/28/supreme-court-health-care_n_1385710.html. Works Cited The Economist. The Economist Newspaper. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. http://www.economist.com/economics-a-to-z/d. "Federal Open Market Committee." FRB:. FRB. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. http://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/fomc.htm. "Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) (United States Defense System)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 13 Apr. 2012. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/568214/Strategic-Defense-Initiative-SDI/. Volkomer, Walter E. "Chapter 13." American Government. New York: Longman, 2011. 352-353. Print.