Earlier this week the House of Representatives voted 59-15 to declare that the state of Louisiana should not be subject to the recently based health insurance mandate.  The debate as well as the vote had a lot of Democrats joining Republicans for a majority to pass the bill.

According to the article “House Votes to Nullify Federal Health Insurance Mandate in Louisiana” by Bill Barrow on NOLA.com, the House Bill 1474 says that each Louisiana resident “is and shall be free from governmental intrusion in choosing or declining to choose any mode of securing health insurance coverage without penalty or threat of penalty”.  This is a step in the right direction many residents who were worried about the high costs of Louisiana health insurance.

Representatives added a surprising measure with an amendment from Democrat Rep. Fred Mills, that would stop the state from paying for hospital care of anyone who goes against the federal mandate that will be in effect starting January 1, 2014.  This hot topic of a health insurance mandate continues to be a huge debate throughout the country and Louisiana is feeling it strong right now.