Unintended Consequences Prevention Act Exposed

The Unintended Consequences Prevention Act was adopted by ALEC's Health and Human Services Task Force at the States and Nation Policy Summit and approved by the ALEC Board of Directors on January 7, 2011.

ALEC Bill Text

SUMMARY

This Act provides that no state department or agency shall implement or enforce any provision of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act unless the department or agency provides a certain report to the legislature, and the legislature authorizes such implementation or enforcement by statute.

MODEL LEGISLATION

Section 1. Findings.

The legislature finds that:

A. {Insert state}’s health care system has been developed to address the unique circumstances in {insert state} and to provide solutions that work for {insert state}; and

B. The federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act:

1. Infringes on state powers;

2. Imposes a uniform solution to a problem that requires different responses in different states;

3. Threatens the progress {insert state} has made towards health care system reform; and

4. Infringes on the rights of citizens of this state to provide for their own health care by:

a. Requiring a person to enroll in a third-party payment system;

b. Imposing fines on a person who chooses to pay directly for health care rather than use a third-party payer;

c. Imposing fines on an employer that does not meet federal standards for providing health care benefits for employees; and

d. Threatening private health care systems with competing government supported health care systems.

Section 2. Model Legislation

A. A department or agency of this state shall not implement or enforce any part of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act unless:

1. The department or agency reports to the legislature in accordance with Subsection B of this section; and

2. The legislature passes legislation specifically authorizing the state’s implementation or enforcement of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, if such implementation or enforcement authority does not already exist.

B. The report required under Subsection A of this section shall include:

1. The specific section of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that requires the state to implement or enforce a federal reform provision;

2. Whether the reform provision has any state waiver or options;

3. Exactly what the reform provision requires the state to do and how it would be implemented;

4. Who in the state will be impacted by adopting the federal reform provision or not adopting the federal reform provision;

5. The cost to the state or citizens of the state to implement the federal reform provision;

6. The consequences to the state if the state does not comply with the federal reform provision.

Section 3. {Severability Clause}

Section 4. {Repealer Clause}

Section 5. {Effective Date}