Here is an email that’s circulating around the Virginia area about the move on to require our elected U.S. representatives to take the same healthcare plan as the people – if indeed a mandatory health care initiative passes through Congress this year:

“On Tuesday, February 9, 2010, the Senate Health Committee voted 12-11 in favor of a two-page amendment – courtesy of Republican Tom Coburn – that would require all members and their staffs to enroll in any new government-run health plan, if they enact such a program.

Congressman John Fleming (a Louisiana physician) has proposed this amendment that would require U.S. House and Senate representatives to take the same healthcare plan they may force on the people they represent. (Under proposed legislation, Congressional members are exempt. Why should there be two levels of coverage?)

Congressman Fleming is encouraging people (regardless of the state they live in) to visit his website and sign a very simple petition. (Only an email address is required.) Here is the link.

Urge as many people as you can to do the same. If Congress forces this program on the American people, those that serve in Congress – that we elect to represent us – should have to accept the same level of health care for themselves and their families. To do otherwise is hypocrisy.

Please pass this on.”

*****

Whatever coverage and requirements that those in Congress feel are beneficial for the American people should be good enough for them, too. This is both reasonable and equitable.

Va. Senate bans health insurance mandate

Today’s Take
Reported on Tuesday, February 02, 2010
On www Stateline.org

“The Democratic-led Virginia Senate sent a strong message about health care reform efforts in Washington, D.C., on Monday (Feb. 1), passing a bill that makes it illegal for Virginians to be required to buy health insurance.

With Republicans in control of the state’s House of Delegates and governor’s mansion, the bill could become law, The Washington Post reported. The effort would throw another wrench into congressional Democrats’ plans to revamp the nation’s health care system in the wake of a special election in Massachusetts that stripped the party of its 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority in the U.S. Senate.

An “individual mandate” that requires Americans to buy health insurance is a centerpiece of federal health care legislation. Virginia’s move could suggest that President Obama — who reiterated his support for reform during his State of the Union address last week — “is failing to reassure members of his own party that current reform efforts remain worthwhile,” The Post said.

A groundswell of opposition to the federal effort is emerging in statehouses around the country, The Associated Press reported today. Bills similar to the legislation cleared by the Virginia Senate are being considered in 35 states, with some lawmakers seeking constitutional amendments to prohibit mandatory health insurance. An Idaho legislative committee has approved a bill similar to Virginia’s, and in Missouri, an overflow crowd showed up at a hearing room when that state’s constitutional amendment was being debated, the AP reported.

What is notable about Monday’s action in the Virginia Senate, however, is that Democrats joined the effort, which has been led by conservatives in most states. Five Democrats joined all 18 Republicans in opposition to a health care mandate. The votes “suggest that Democrats on the state level fear that supporting health care reform could be politically damaging,” The Post said.”

“Today’s Take” provides a quick analysis of the day’s top news in state government.