A bill to amend the Missouri state constitution to guarantee Missourians health care freedom and lay the groundwork for nullification efforts passed through committee and will go to the House for a full vote.
House Joint Resolution 62 (HJR62) was introduced by Rep. Kurt Bahr (R-102) on Jan. 16. It passed through the House Health Care Policy Committee on Mar. 6. The amendment would prohibit any agency from compelling Missourians from participating in any health care system, or from penalizing them or taxing them for choosing not to participate.
The amendment language reads in part:
No government official or agency shall have any authority either to compel any person, employer, or health care provider to participate in any health care system, or purchase any specific health care services or products, or purchase health care services or products in general, or to impose any sort of direct or indirect penalty, tax, fee, or levy for choosing not to participate in such a system or purchase such products; nor shall any government official or agency make a citizen’s right to offer or accept direct payment for lawful health care services subject to any form of direct or indirect penalty, tax, fee, or levy nor shall any government official or agency dictate the mode or content of lawful health care services or products offered.
HJR62 would put the following question on the ballot for Missouri voters to consider. “Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to declare that all persons have a fundamental, natural right to make their own choices about whether to obtain lawful health care services or products and make and receive direct payment for such services or products according to private, voluntary agreements?”
If passed, it would require the Missouri legislature to take further steps to protect its citizens from Obamacare mandates and taxes. Lawmakers would also need to take steps to nullify Obamacare in the state, since the program would violate the state constitution.
The next step would be to prohibit the state from providing any material support to implementing Obamacare and then move on to the other steps in the Tenth Amendment Center’s four-step plan to nullify Obamacare, Fox News Senior Judicial Analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano noted that such actions were not just legal, but effective.
“If enough states do this, it will gut Obamacare because the federal government doesn’t have the resources…to go into each of the states if they start refusing,” he said.
Based on the long-standing principle known as the anti-commandeering doctrine, the legislation is on strong legal grounds. In four major cases from 1842 to 2012, the Supreme Court has consistently held that the federal government cannot “commandeer” states, requiring them to enforce or expend resources to participate in federal law or regulatory programs.
If HJR62 is passed, it will lay a solid foundation for further action. However, they won’t be fully safeguarded until our more comprehensive four-step plan is in full effect. That means that there is still much work that needs to be done to save the health freedom of Missourians from federal intrusion.
ACTION ITEMS
For Missouri: To help HJR62 through the legislature, click HERE.
For Other States: To help fight Obamacare in your state, click HERE
