Apr 12, 2006 1:41 pm US/Eastern
Romney Signs Landmark Health Insurance Bill
BOSTON (AP) ―
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The legislation is seen as a political coup for Romney as he weighs a potential run for president in 2008.
CBS4
Governor Romney has signed into law a landmark bill designed to guarantee virtually all Massachusetts residents have health insurance.
The signing, done at historic Faneuil Hall with much fanfare to reflect the significance of the new law, was not without some political discord, as Romney vetoed a key portion of the bill -- a $295-per-worker assessment on businesses that do not provide health insurance.
The law is intended to require coverage for nearly all of Massachusetts' estimated 550,000 uninsured, is being touted as a national model, thrusting the state to the forefront of the national debate about how to provide near-universal health care coverage without creating a single government-controlled system.
It's also a political coup for Romney as he weighs a potential run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008.
The law could be a centerpiece of that campaign if Romney can credibly claim pushing through a groundbreaking health care reform package.
The many speakers at the ticket-only event attended by more than 300 people were quick to congratulate each other on the bipartisan effort. Romney, a Republican mulling a 2008 presidential run, and Senator Edward Kennedy shared the same Faneuil Hall stage for the first time since Romney's failed effort to unseat him in 1994.
"With the signing of this landmark health reform bill, after so many years of false starts, our actions have finally matched our words and we have lived up to our ideals," Kennedy said. "You have given Massachusetts just what the doctor ordered."
Romney used his line-item veto power to strike eight portions of the bill, most significant the $295 fee. Administration officials say the fee could actually discourage registration for the new health program, since some employers might consider it cheaper to pay the fee than insure workers. Romney, in his veto, said it was not necessary to implement or finance the reform.
Leaders of the heavily Democratic House and Senate have said they would override any changes proposed by the governor.
House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi criticized the governor for the vetoes, saying the law was crafted with concessions and compromise.
"To change anything will disturb the delicate balance that made this law possible," DiMasi said, in prepared remarks. "Each and every element of this law is critical to accomplishing our intentions and goals."
Besides the $295 per-employee fee, the law provides subsidies and sliding-scale premiums to get poor and low-income residents into health plans. Those deemed able to afford insurance but who still refuse would face increasing tax penalties.
The plan is already drawing criticism from some who say the requirement that everyone have insurance, known as an "individual mandate," is an unacceptable expansion of government power. Some small business owners have also blasted the $295 fee, saying it could force them to fire workers or make it harder for them to expand.
The legislation also fails to flesh out some of the grittier details of the plan, including just how inexpensive the new low-cost health plans envisioned by the legislation will actually be.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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