Mitt Romney: No Apology for Individual Health Care Mandate

I hope Romney speaks out more. I think the Massachuetts healthcare plan and Obamacare are uniquely different but no one is addressing the differences because they are in a mindset to think they are the same. Heritage Foundation praised the Massachuetts healthcare plan back in 2006. So did many others. The nation thought it was a big break through. Nothing has changed except that a lot of misinformation has been spued to create a paradigm that is just not true. Was the Massachuetts plan perfect? No, it was the first of its kind. It addressed an issue that has not gone away but is still an issue. It was miles ahead of any thing anyone else had proposed. Certainly it can be improved and I feel it sad that a different Govenor had to implement it. Too bad that Romney left the office so soon. I would liked to have seen him oversee the program for a few years. I think it would have made a difference

Sure, after the insurance companies have divided the 50 state markets among themselves, we the people should just keep our attitude “independent” from federal assistance. Funny how that should work for natural people but not for artificial people (aka business).

Despite the political diatribe, most of which is innuendo and false accusations from the uneducated against Romney…
It’s the economy, stupid!
Romney has created more private sector jobs, saved more private sector businesses than any other candidate.
Funny. Half of MA loves what Romney did, the other half hate him, maybe because he left after completing only one term. Maybe he is not a “career” politician, do you always need a “career” politician to get the job done?
Yes, he worked as the MA governor for his entire term for FREE!!! Who else would have done that!?
MA had a huge deficit when he started, and he left MA with a surplus and balanced budget without raising taxes at the end of his term. He can’t help it if the government screwed up after he left.
The MA’s super majority Democrat controlled legislature wanted desperately some kind of Universal Health care program. He worked with them to create one that would work, similar to mandated auto insurance. It is estimated that 98% of the residents are now covered. It was within projected budget, except after Romney left the state government had to make changes to the program and now it is costing them. Romney believes that states — not the federal government — should be free to design their own plans for covering the uninsured.
He compromised on some things in order to keep the state government working together and moving forward.
He has successfully and profitably managed large businesses, helped turn around large companies that were sinking and helped other companies get started, saving and creating thousands of American jobs. What other candidate has done that?
He knows and understands world economics.
He turned around a struggling 2002 Winter Olympics and made it into one of the most profitable Olympics in history. And only took a $1 dollar salary. Who else would have done that!?
He is against federalization and big government and believes in state’s rights to govern their own affairs.
He lives the example and believes in the importance of family.
He is for a strong military and believes the borders should be better protected.
The list of real positives is far greater than the supposed list of negatives.

Flip flop alert! Romney’s hilarious. You couldn’t invent a more craven politician. For abortion rights before he was against them. For a mandate before he was against it. Romney has all the conviction of a wet noodle. He ought to get a job with the circus as a contortionist!

Obamacare is a gonner, and so is obama and as a result of obamacare so went the jobs. NO employer would ever hire with obamacare im place. Thats why over 900 companies have already received exceptions and don’t have to abide by obamacare. A failed experiment that was illegally forced on the ciezens.

Romney needs to shut up about health care , he says his state has the right to not follow federal mandate , well thats just great , then each state that doesn’t want everyone to have some kind of health coverage . go right ahead . ((( but don’t ask for federal funding to help pay for those who don’t have coverage )) period . also this man will not become presodent , he would take us right back to the Bush , Cheney Rove years . and everyone would have to become a Mormon

Let me tell you one thing that the best health insurance plans has completely different set of meaning for different type of people. For those who are rich, the plan which can earn them more is best. However, those who are in the middle class have different ideas. They think that insurance plan is the best for which they will have to pay minimum premium. However, the poor person does not even know that what is health insurance? If you are one of them search online for “Wise Health Insurance” and get smart about insurance.

This entire series is an embarrassment. How does ABC justify allowing undeclared presidential “candidates” several minutes to bash the POTUS? Is Stephanopolous incapable of asking a follow up question?
I abandoned the Today Show when the governor of New Jersey said he was for shrinking government like Reagan, and the instead of the host pointing out that Reagan tripled the size of government, he asked a question about something called Jersey Shore. This is my “Jersey Shore Moment” relative to GMA. A sycophantic media is absolutely worthless.

The media knows that the only Republican that can beat Obama is Mitt Romney.
This is why they tirelessly try and equivocate Obamacare and Romneycare. What is truly sad are the Republicans and or conservatives that actually fall for this liberal-media slant.
What these “extremely” dumb Republicans don’t know is that Romney care was patterned after health care reform proposed by the HERITAGE FOUNDATION!
Worse, George and the rest of the liberal bunch fail to disclose that Romneycare was changed by Democrats to what it is today which Romney vetoed.
So, in truth, Democrats should be thanking fellow Democrats for “Romneycare” in Massachusetts.
Romney wants to build up America and return her to her best place. He doesn’t want universal healthcare for the nation, he wants to create millions of jobs and focus on American values that are time tested and proven.

PALIN STEPPED DOWN AND SAVED HER STATE MILLIONS, ROMNEY STAYED ON AND COST HIS STATE BILLIONS….

I find it comical that there are so many neanderthals out there that reject the only viable candidate that could actually put this country back on track again to properity. Go for it Romney!

The title and lead of this story are completely disingenuous. Comparing state legislation to a federal mandate is asinine. It’s wholly reasonable for Romney to both support what he did at a state level in Massachusetts and oppose what Obama did at a federal level with Obamacare. A one-size-fits-all health care solution for 300 million people isn’t just a terrible idea, it’s beyond the realm of the Federal Government’s Constitutional authority.
Romney doesn’t need to “run away” from his work on health care in MA. All he has to do is tout Federalism.

There is no individual right that a the federal government must respect that a state can take away! Just none. That is not how it works.

“Objective American citizens do not use the term “Obamacare” because it is a DISRESPECTFUL term for the recent health care reform”
Only a totally morally vacant person could worry about disrespect for a politically created “law” that has as its very soul the slaughter of countless innocent humans both unborn, just born(that Obamacide thingy) and the old (those ‘death by rationing and guilt trips’panels.
It’s as if human dignity is to be laughed at and some culture of death unwanted law has somehow stolen the dignity of the person.
If Godless liberals only felt as strongly about the words of the constitution as they do the words they create to undermine it and Nature’s God, sanity might prevail once again in this once great nation.
Perhaps Satancare might be a more appropriate term!

Hypocritical at best!!! Good for me..Not good for YOU!! A CAREER Nominee! Obama 2012!

Ummm…I wonder did he push the “pause” buttom….and How would he feel with a “pause” buttom on his sick wife if he wasn’t rich!

Most of the people against the Healthcare bill do not understand why the mandate was placed in the bill. The RePubs put it in the bill because the INS companies wanted it in the bill for good reasons. Now why would people in the GOP party let poor working class people go to an ER with life threating prolems get amitted and run up 1 million dollars in cost. I pay for it because I have healthcare. Now why not make that person pay something. They are gaming the system and the INS companies have proved it. This is why the INS companies demanded a mandate.

Sorry Kay –
But you stated “The term is intended to marginalize a piece of legislation supported by a majority of Americans …” – a comment which could not be further from the truth.
Opinion polling leading up to both votes, and post enactment, show a majority of Americans do not support the Healthcare “reform” legislation. Only in a few states will you find a majority of the voting populace still support the bill.
A majority of Americans do support “healthcare reform”, but to state a majority of Americans support the piece of legislation signed into law is an outright lie.
This bodes true at the congressional level as well. In the top (closest) 100 races in the country involving Democrat incumbents, the HC bill had an unfavorable rating (even if just barely) in more than 75% of the races. Yes, I have seen the survey research to back this up.

The idea that states can handle healthcare themselves is a valid one and Massachusetts stepped up to the plate and did something which is great. I would hope states would take the iniative but they have a long time to do so and still most did nothing. The insurance companies had a long time to do something they chose not to. It was time to do something and the federal government knew they had to move on it. People, our family, friends and neighbors needed something done.

We need a real debate about healthcare in this country. The truth will set up free. It is cheaper to create a healthcare plan in Massachusetts because of a number on reasons. The top reason is the people in Massachusetts vs. the people in my State Georgia are much healthier because of life styles. Yes people the Southern States are one of the reasons the cost of healthcare is high. Second reason is look at the education levels in Massachusetts vs. my State of Georgia. Yes people make more money in Massachusetts so the States tax Revs are higher per person. I can keep going and going. The bottom line the States that cost America more in Medicare cost are the States not wanting healthcare. We in Georgia will just keep running up 1 million dollar healthcare bills created when the working un insured checks into the ER witch I pay for when I pay for when I pay my INS. Yes my INS bill is very high and it has been going up for years. It went up 10% in 2005. Wonder how it went up 10% in 2005 when Bush was in office.

I’ll preface by saying that I know there isn’t a federal mandate to buy car insurance. And I’m not comparing apples and oranges below.
So if the Federal government cannot mandate that everyone has to purchase health insurance, then why are states allowed to mandate the purchase of car insurance? Why, so YOU have someone to collect from if I smash into your car? So I have to buy car insurance to cover your costs. Well, the NATIONAL HEALTH CARE mandate requires you to buy insurance so I don’t have to pay for your uninsured medical care.
You’d be dumb NOT to have car insurance, but there are tons of people out there keeping insurance companies like Safe Auto in business. Most, if not all, of those people would drop their car insurance in a heartbeat if it wasn’t mandated by the government.
Take away that mandate in each state and now you don’t have an insurance company to collect from in an accident caused by an uninsured motorist. You’d get tired real quick having to hire a lawyer to sue the person (who doesn’t have two nickels to rub together) every time.
Bottom line, the mandates save you money in the end on your premiums because those premiums are no longer paying for two or three other people without insurance.

I agree that their needs to be a healthcare overhaul and more access to healthcare, however I don’t agree that everyone should be forced to buy health insurance. If I don’t want that bill on my kithchen table, then that’s my prerogative.

I’m undecided about this issue and have several questions I would like answered. Why have many people seen significant increases in their health care insurance since this bill was passed? Why have so many companies opted to pay the fine over the coverage fees for their employees and why has HHS and the WH administration granted 733 waivers to companys and unions exempting them from participating in the health care plan? If this plan is for the best and is going to lower costs why are exemptions needed? Why aren’t our elected officials participating in the plan?

I don’t see how Romney can compare tea with health insurance. Everyone needs health insurance. Over 40,000 Americans die each year because they can’t afford it. This is pure tragedy.

If Romney refused to publicly admit that his effort at solving the health care problems in Massachusetts failed he will never become a viable Republican candidate for the presidency. If he wants conservative support he has to publicly admit that he made mistakes, but tried to solve his state’s health care dilemma and agrees their effort has failed and instead of saving money has raised the coat of health care in Massachusetts. That is the one stumbling block in his path to the nomination…

It is not and never has been the job of Congress to insure the health of “middle class” Americans.
Mitt Romney has done a great job of distinguishing the two plans, and the constitutionality question is critical.
At least on a state level, we have the option to move to another state. (For example, if we prefer the business start up, taxation or privacy laws of Delaware, Wyoming or Nevada, we can start a business there should we not approve of liberal California or New York state taxes.)
There is NO guarantee that Australia, England, Canada, etc. will be willing to take refugees should ObamaScare actually go into effect.
NO FEDERAL MANDATES!!!

Sick of politicians thinking we are incapable of making an itelligent decision with our their interference.

This states rights issues seems eerily similar to the same language that the Confederate south used to back their ability to keep slaves. States do not have the ultimate say so. They shouldn’t. If many states had their way, we would still have slavery, poll taxes, segregation etc..

I you can get something for free…why pay? Download you free music..even if it hurts you favorite musician or composer. Send your kids to school..if you live in Tx. and don’t own a house, you pay no property Tax..free school.
The problem with eliminating the MANDATE TO GET INSURANCE is that no one wantS to pay for it but they will show up at the emergency room for treatment and then DON’T PAY…The hospital cannot hold you hostage.
You cannot operate a vehicle in TX without liability insurance..it’s a requirement under Texas law and is true in most, if not all states.
I had no insurance as a child..none until I was a employee of the State of Texas…a RED state. Each year my coverage got more expensive and many years I sought no medical attention but I’m a little older now and I have two children 18 and 16…one athmatic and one athlete..both have had expensive treatments…each year the care is reduced and the premium goes up.
The MARKET PLACE HAS NOT FIX A DARN THING…REPUBLICANS HAVE NOT FIXED A DARN THING…THANK GOD FOR PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA!

ZAZU–”That is why I “hate” Republicans. They are boldly clueless and above all HYPOCRITICAL. “— What I have real disdain for (I won’t use the word hate because it does not apply) are people who call others clueless when they don’t know what they are talking about.. Its not Hypocritical to defend a mandate at the state level and oppose it at the federal level.. Vastly different laws apply.. States have much more authority to make mandates.. Thats why individual requirements for the purchase of auto insurance vary from state to state. the federal govenemnt however, must operate under specific enumerated powers .. In other words, if the constitution does not SPECIFICALLY allow the federal government to do something, then they are not allowed to do it, while a state has much broader authority under the federal constitution. Please.. before you call other people clueless and hypocrites, PLEASE do some research and KNOW what you are talking about first…

ARRGGGHHHH! It drives me absolutely batty how people refuse to accept that there are more choices than just radical left or radical right. And how subtleties like the difference between a state mandate and federal mandate not only aren’t understood, but that people make no effort to understand them, preferring just to shout more insults. It ain’t Palin who’s dividing us, it’s people like Zazu who refuse to accept that there are as many good people among Reps as there are among Dems, and who refuse to accept that a Republican can have good motives. Fair-minded Republicans understand that something needs to be done to the health care system, just as fair-minded Democrats understand that the Obamacare law was a complete and utter fiasco.
I will listen to Obamacare proponents when they explain to me:
1. How they can support a bill when the Speaker of the House says we have to pass it to know what’s in it? No sane person can possibly think that passing an unread bill is a good idea.
2. Even if the bill was good when written (unlikely, since it was all Dem and no Rep, but let’s assume for the sake of argument), by the time they were done with all the locked-door earmark trading and vote-buying it bore no resemblance to its original form. How its proponents can accept perhaps the worst, most corrupt example I’ve ever seen of how Congress works is beyond me.

“Objective American citizens”…now what are those? Who, after the nonsense last Spring in its passage and the lies and spin since, is objective regarding Obamacare?

One big similarity that I can see that Romneycare and Obamacare have in common is that they are in the RED, hemoraging red ink right from the very beginning. It’s a colossal failure and will colapse under its own weight.
I live in Massachusetts and Romney will never get my vote.

Cowcharge wrote:
“Fair-minded Republicans understand that something needs to be done to the health care system”
Correct.
There are several things that should be done without standing the Constitution on it’s ear.
–End the exemption for ‘self insured’ plans. If an employer wants to ‘play insurance company’ then he should be regulated like one. (yes I’m a conservative and I want to see insurors properly regulated) What effect would this have? Most employers would trade their ‘self insured plans’ for a real insurance contract with a real insurance company. What that means for consumers is that their insuror (now an insurance company instead of their employer) would be once again subject to the consumer protection laws that their state and their state insurance department already have in place. This will have huge effects in things like portability and pre-existing conditions.
–Allow individuals to band together and buy a group insurance plan. Why should only ‘employment based’ groups like unions and corporations be able to purchase a group plan? This is a change that would have to be done state by state. Let’s get it done.
—HSAs for everybody. Let anyone open a HSA and use tax free dollars to purchase health insurance, medicine (prescription or OTC), pay their co-pay, or other health expenditures.

So, “Obamacare is a bad piece of legislation”, and Romney is “siding with the judge who ruled it unconstitutional”
Hey Romney: YOU were the one who likened
the health insrance mandate with mandatory auto insurance!
Kind of like O.J. Simpson being outraged at domestic violence!!!