Revision: May 5, 2011, midnight
SB 148-FN – AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
03/09/11 0456s
4May2011… 1431h
2011 SESSION
01/10
SENATE BILL 148-FN
AN ACT relative to health insurance coverage, requiring the attorney general to join the lawsuit challenging the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and requiring federal grant moneys received by the state for implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be returned to the federal government.
SPONSORS: Sen. De Blois, Dist 18; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. Barnes, Jr., Dist 17; Sen. Boutin, Dist 16; Sen. Bragdon, Dist 11; Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Forrester, Dist 2; Sen. Forsythe, Dist 4; Sen. Gallus, Dist 1; Sen. Groen, Dist 6; Sen. Lambert, Dist 13; Sen. Morse, Dist 22; Sen. Odell, Dist 8; Sen. Rausch, Dist 19; Sen. Sanborn, Dist 7; Sen. Stiles, Dist 24; Sen. White, Dist 9
This bill:
I. Provides that a resident of New Hampshire shall not be required to obtain, or be assessed a fee or fine for failure to obtain, health insurance coverage.
II. Requires the attorney general to join the state of New Hampshire as a plaintiff in the lawsuit pending in federal court captioned State of Florida et al. v. United States Department of Health and Human Services et al.
III. Requires certain grant moneys received by the New Hampshire insurance department for the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be returned to the federal government.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
03/09/11 0456s
4May2011… 1431h
11-0258
01/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Eleven
AN ACT relative to health insurance coverage, requiring the attorney general to join the lawsuit challenging the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and requiring federal grant moneys received by the state for implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be returned to the federal government.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Section; Insurance Department; Health Insurance Coverage. Amend RSA 400-A by inserting after section 14 the following new section:
400-A:14-a Health Insurance Coverage. No resident of this state, regardless of whether he or she has or is eligible for health insurance coverage under any policy or program provided by or through his or her employer, or a plan sponsored by the state or the federal government, shall be required to obtain or maintain a policy of individual insurance coverage except as required by a court or the department of health and human services where an individual is named a party in a judicial or administrative proceeding. No provision of this title shall render a resident of this state liable for any penalty, assessment, fee, or fine as a result of his or her failure to procure or obtain health insurance coverage. This section shall not apply to individuals voluntarily applying for coverage under a state-administered program pursuant to Title XIX or Title XXI of the Social Security Act. This section shall not apply to students being required by an institution of higher education to obtain and maintain health insurance as a condition of enrollment. Nothing in this section shall impair the rights of persons to privately contract for health insurance for family members or former family members.
2 Statement of Findings. The general court finds that:
I. Several federal courts have ruled that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional and at least one federal court has ruled the act nonseverable.
II. The New Hampshire insurance department has accepted federal moneys for implementation of a law which is likely to be ruled unconstitutional and therefore is likely to be invalidated.
III. The general court is concerned with the spending of all tax dollars, whether at the state or federal level, when the federal government is running a massive structural deficit.
3 Lawsuit Challenging the Federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The attorney general shall, no later than July 1, 2011, move to join the state of New Hampshire as a plaintiff in the lawsuit pending in federal court captioned State of Florida et al. v. United States Department of Health and Human Services et al.
4 Funds From Grants Returned to Department of Health and Human Services. The state treasurer shall return any grant funds received by the insurance department for purposes of implementing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to the federal Department of Health and Human Services for the purpose of reducing the federal budget deficit.
5 Effective Date.
I. Section 1 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2011.
II. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
LBAO
11-0258
Amended 03/15/11
SB 148 FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to health insurance coverage, requiring the attorney general to join the lawsuit challenging the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and requiring federal grant moneys received by the state for implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to be returned to the federal government.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Insurance Department and Department of Justice state this bill, as amended by the Senate (Amendment #2011-0456s), will decrease state general fund revenues, and increase state general fund expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2012 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on county and local revenues or expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
This bill provides that a resident of New Hampshire will not be required to obtain health insurance and will not be assessed a fee or fine for not obtaining health insurance. The Insurance Department states this bill will decrease state revenues from the insurance premium tax for individuals who would have been required to purchase insurance under a mandate. The Department is currently reviewing the anticipated increase in premium tax and cannot estimate the fiscal impact at this time.
This bill also requires the Department of Justice to join the lawsuit entitled State of Florida et. al. v. United States Department of Health and Human Services et. al. challenging the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The Department of Justice states this bill will result in Department expenses to participate in telephone conferences, research, drafting of pleadings and briefs, and possibly out-of-state travel. Because it is not clear whether the case will be appealed to federal circuit court or the United States Supreme Court, the Department is unable to estimate the fiscal impact at this time.