Florida sees differences in opposition

Now Florida has jumped into the battle It has joined the long list of states who have filed some form of litigation in order to repel or deny the new federal reform bill to be effective in 2014.

Florida’s Attorney General Bill McCollum said, “If Congress can regulate the failure to have healthcare insurance coverage, it can equally regulate the `failure' to meet any other requirement it chooses to impose,''

The Florida lawsuit has a lot of firepower with 20 state attorney generals working on the case.

However, a group of 34 organizations, led by patient advocacy group FLORIDA CHAIN, have opposed the popular mandate and have urged the state to implement the reforms as soon as possible.

Their logic: Florida could lose out on millions of dollars over the decade if the state continues to ignore the new federal reform laws. In a letter addressed to the Governor Charlie Crist and Attorney General, McCollum, the group has reasoned, “"Because Florida has not moved forward, the federal government has already begun making some implementation decisions on Florida's behalf. Our state has also already turned down new resources made available from ACA implementation, allowing other states to take Florida's share."
The advocacy groups lists out the following priorities in the state to-do list:
• Opportunities to increase Florida's supply of health care professionals.
• Setting up medical homes to better coordinate care for Medicaid recipients.
• Reducing health care costs driven by the practice of defensive medicine.
• Helping residents get health coverage
However, at the moment, Florida is keener on repelling the federal Act than working in the priorities of the reform bill.