Virginia to sue U.S. over healthcare reform

[BigBadBrian]

NEW YORK, March 22 (Reuters) - Virginia's attorney general said he plans to sue the federal government over the healthcare reform legislation, saying Congress lacks authority to force people to buy health insurance.

Attorney General Kenneth Cuccinelli, a Republican, said on Monday that Congress lacks authority under its constitutional power to regulate interstate commerce to force people to buy insurance. He said the bill also conflicts with a state law that says Virginians cannot be required to buy insurance.

"If a person decides not to buy health insurance, that person by definition is not engaging in commerce," Cuccinelli said in recorded comments. "If you are not engaging in commerce, how can the federal government regulate you?"

Cuccinelli said he plans to file his lawsuit in federal court in Richmond, Virginia, after President Barack Obama signs the bill into law, which he is expected to do.

The bill requires most Americans to have health coverage, and provides subsidies to help lower-income workers afford it.

No Republican voted for the bill, which passed the House on Sunday night by a 219-212 vote.
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[ELVIS]

I'm not opposed to healthcare reform at all. What I am opposed to is the federal government takeover - power grab that is happening right before our eyes...

I firmly believe that the federal government has NO business interfering in the private lives of responsible american citizens...

Health insurance and insurance companies should be regulated by the individual states as auto insurance is. A huge government bureaucracy will result in HUGE unaffordable costs. The federal government is incapable of running ANYTHING efficiently without taking, creating, or borrowing FROM CHINA the money to do so...

Why are so many of you democrats willing to hand over the federal government such an important aspect of your personal lives ??

Why are individual states not even considered in these discussions ??

Why does it appear that back door deals, bribes and threats to "ram it through" are the methods used to barely even get the ball rolling on such an important issue ??

The whole idea needs to be scrapped and the process started over at the state level. The main reason being that a state has an actual budget to work within, whereas the federal government works with imaginary figures reaching in to the stratosphere. We do not have the money because we don't have the necessary jobs to support such astronomical figures!!!

TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS!!!

We don't have the money!

[FORD]

The problem is that it is NOT a federal government takeover, nor any kind of government takeover at all. It is mandatory payments to a corporation.

And I'm actually hoping the Virginia Repukes are successful with this, because the corporate mandate was a fucking STUPID idea. Baucus should be taken out and shot for that shit.

[ELVIS]

I wonder how many people actually realize that a lot of what has been written regarding this "bill" has been by corporate insurance companies...

[kwame k]

I wonder how many people actually realize that a lot of what has been written regarding this "bill" has been by corporate insurance companies...

It's sad that such a great idea gets bogged down into politics and greed.

We pay the most for health care than any other industrialized nation but can't insure everyone.

We spend more on the military industrial complex per year than anything else but can't seem to do what every other industrialized nation has already done, give health care to it's citizens.

[Sensible Shoes]

I'm not opposed to healthcare reform at all. What I am opposed to is the federal government takeover - power grab that is happening right before our eyes...

I firmly believe that the federal government has NO business interfering in the private lives of responsible american citizens...

Health insurance and insurance companies should be regulated by the individual states as auto insurance is. A huge government bureaucracy will result in HUGE unaffordable costs. The federal government is incapable of running ANYTHING efficiently without taking, creating, or borrowing FROM CHINA the money to do so...

Why are so many of you democrats willing to hand over the federal government such an important aspect of your personal lives ??

Why are individual states not even considered in these discussions ??

Why does it appear that back door deals, bribes and threats to "ram it through" are the methods used to barely even get the ball rolling on such an important issue ??

The whole idea needs to be scrapped and the process started over at the state level. The main reason being that a state has an actual budget to work within, whereas the federal government works with imaginary figures reaching in to the stratosphere. We do not have the money because we don't have the necessary jobs to support such astronomical figures!!!

TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS!!!

We don't have the money!

\

How can you say states are in a better position to handle this? Quite a few are on the verge of bankruptcy and are cutting health and human services left and right!

[Seshmeister]

Also would people not just move state if one had free healthcare and another left you to die or demanded you were bankrupt?

[ELVIS]

People should have the freedom to move from state to state for whatever seems attractive to them or whatever is important to them...

The individual state and local governments should to have the freedom to make their own decisions regarding the jobs, services and opportunities they may or may not provide for it's present and future residents and business owners...

[ELVIS]

How can you say states are in a better position to handle this? Quite a few are on the verge of bankruptcy and are cutting health and human services left and right!

The federal government IS bankrupt and it does not exist to provide health and human services!

Those are state and local government issues...

[Seshmeister]

People should have the freedom to move from state to state for whatever seems attractive to them or whatever is important to them...

But where ever they go they have to pay for the massive 'socialized' military.

[DavidLeeNatra]

But where ever they go they have to pay for the massive 'socialized' military.

nuff said...

[ELVIS]

So that means line up everything in the manner of the overinflated military spending ??

[Nitro Express]

Wall Street took over Washington, bailed themselves out, then they took over the mortgage industry and a the auto industry. Healthcare adds another few hotels to the monopoly board.

[Nitro Express]

It never was about healthcare reform. It's about opening loopholes for the IRS to steal more money. This will bankrupt the US. The healthcare reform will die when the whole economy dies and nobody wants Federal Reserve notes anymore. Until that day comes, they are going to use new mandates and 17,000 new IRS thugs to take all the money they can.

They ripped us off with the banker's bailout and now they did it a second time with health care reform. Enjoy the government ruining what was a state of art healthcare system and your IRS audit. Enjoy more taxes and less job opportunities unless of course you want to be a IRS thug.

[kwame k]

So that means line up everything in the manner of the overinflated military spending ??

To me it means stop spending so much on the military and start spending our money rebuilding our infrastructure, schools and health care.