It isn’t entirely why buying or not buying health insurance is a privacy issue, but I think the key legal issue is whether or not a mandate is an unreasonable infringement on individual freedoms. The other side of the question is if it is reasonable or not for someone who does not have insurance or the money to pay for their medical care to expect their fellow citizens to pay for them. Uncompensated care isn’t free. It is paid for through increased costs for others and through higher insurance premiums. The logical consequence of what Mr. Jared argues for would be to deny care. Fortunately, we are more civilized than that.

Bob Thompson, Kirkland