Mass. approves universal healthcare plan

Massachusetts lawmakers voted in for a major health reform bill, making the state the first in the nation to require citizens to purchase insurance. Gov. Mitt Romney (R), who has publicly campaigned for the measure, is expected to sign the bill into law. Supporters say the "hybrid" approach to guaranteeing healthcare, which mandates individuals to buy coverage and uses taxpayer funds for subsidies for the poor, could serve as a model for a national system. The law requires employers with more than 11 employees to pay for a percentage of the benefit, although it's possible that Romney might use the line-item veto to change that piece of the law.

Romney, who many observers predict will run for the presidency in 2008, is expected to run on the strength of the reform effort. If the approach is successful, he may have a leg up on the competition. The cynics point at the state of the insurance market in Hawaii, the only other state to have passed universal coverage, and predict doom and chaos.

- see this article from BusinessWeek