Senator Reid’s “manager’s amendment” to the Senate health-reform bill seems filled with bits and pieces of language to assuage the concerns that have arisen in the weeks that people have had to read Reid’s underlying proposal.
One of the first (see page 5 of the amendment) clarifies that a “health and wellness promotion activity” that would be implemented under the bill can not require a participant to disclosure whether or not he or she has a lawfully possessed firearm or ammunition.
It also says that an insurer can’t use owning a firearm as one of the criteria used to determine whether to sell you health insurance or determine how much you’ll pay. I had not thought about this possibility before, but since the proposal would move America from private to political health insurance, with the rules of what is covered and how much it costs determined by politicians and bureaucrats, this is an issue that would eventually emerge on someone’s agenda.
One has to wonder what hasn’t been thought of that eventually will come into play under the broad authorities granted by the legislation.
— Hanns Kuttner is a visiting fellow at Hudson Institute.