Virginia Senate: Health insurance not mandatory

Virginia’s Senate just passed a preemptive bill preventing a health insurance mandate. The bill, SB417, passed 23-17.

February 1, 2010; 2:25 PM • by Ross Catrow

Virginia’s Senate just passed a preemptive bill preventing a health insurance mandate. The bill, SB417, passed 23-17. The current split of the Senate is 22 Democrats and 18 Republicans; all Republicans voted for the bill as well as five Democrats (Edd Houck, Charles Colgan, Phil Puckett, John Miller, Roscoe Reynolds).

Here’s the text of the bill:

Individual health insurance coverage; requirement to obtain. Provides that a resident of the Commonwealth shall not be required to obtain or maintain a policy of individual insurance coverage. This applies regardless of whether the person has or is eligible for health insurance coverage under any policy or program provided by or through his employer or a plan sponsored by the Commonwealth or the federal government. The measure also states that no provision of Title 38.2 renders a resident liable for any penalty, assessment, fee, or fine as a result of his failure to procure or obtain health insurance coverage.

This bill is in opposition to the Democrat led efforts to pass Federal healthcare/insurance legislation, part of which includes a provision for a health insurance mandate.

The corresponding House bill is HB10 and is currently waiting in the Commerce and Labor committee for voting. HB10 passed the subcommittee 8-2.

Update

Here is the full list of votes:

YEAS — Blevins, Colgan, Hanger, Houck, Hurt, Martin, McDougle, McWaters, Miller, J.C., Newman, Norment, Obenshain, Puckett, Quayle, Reynolds, Ruff, Smith, Stosch, Stuart, Vogel, Wagner, Wampler, Watkins

NAYS — Barker, Deeds, Edwards, Herring, Howell, Locke, Lucas, Marsden, Marsh, McEachin, Miller, Y.B., Northam, Petersen, Puller, Saslaw, Ticer, Whipple.