White House contender Mitt Romney has taken criticism from political opponents over his 2006 healthcare reform law in Massachusetts, but others — including the state's current governor — say the law has been a success, according to an NPR report.
Overall, the Massachusetts' law has received little opposition, even though it includes an individual mandate clause just like President Barack Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act — the same provision that will be subject to a Supreme Court ruling this summer.
When he was rolling out the law in 2006, then-Governor Romney said, "We're going to say, 'Folks, if you can afford [healthcare], then, gosh, you'd better go get it. Otherwise you're just passing on your expenses to someone else.' That's not Republican, that's not Democratic, that's not Libertarian — that's just wrong," according to the report.
Now, more than 98 percent of Massachusetts citizens are insured. Gov. Deval Patrick also says the law has cost "about 1 percent in additional new state spending," according to the report. Andrew Dreyfus, president of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, said, "The sky did not fall. And by the way, we have much stronger penalties around the individual mandate than the national law has, and despite that, the sky did not fall," according to the report.
Only about 1 percent of Massachusetts taxpayers have ended up paying any penalty under the law.
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Overall, the Massachusetts' law has received little opposition, even though it includes an individual mandate clause just like President Barack Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act — the same provision that will be subject to a Supreme Court ruling this summer.
When he was rolling out the law in 2006, then-Governor Romney said, "We're going to say, 'Folks, if you can afford [healthcare], then, gosh, you'd better go get it. Otherwise you're just passing on your expenses to someone else.' That's not Republican, that's not Democratic, that's not Libertarian — that's just wrong," according to the report.
Now, more than 98 percent of Massachusetts citizens are insured. Gov. Deval Patrick also says the law has cost "about 1 percent in additional new state spending," according to the report. Andrew Dreyfus, president of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, said, "The sky did not fall. And by the way, we have much stronger penalties around the individual mandate than the national law has, and despite that, the sky did not fall," according to the report.
Only about 1 percent of Massachusetts taxpayers have ended up paying any penalty under the law.
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