Leave mandate to the states

States should decidewhether tomandate that all residents have health insurance, just as states legislate motorcycle helmet laws. Both are risk/benefit assessments that impact individual freedoms, but also impact the local community who respond to crises and care for those who lose their risky bet.

Marketplaces are different by state, as is Medicaid coverage. Only three states (Illinois, Iowa and New Hampshire) currently have no helmet use laws. Most, like Florida, have “partial” helmet use laws. I encourage the Florida Legislature to deliberate and legislate health insurance in similar fashion.