By Marcy Zwelling, MD Published 07/29/10  
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You don't have to reach too far to make a comparison between FDR and President Obama. The depression and recession that these presidents inherited upon inauguration are a great place to start. The analogy continues as history analyzes the means they have used to solve our economic crises including what might be considered massive government interference with the private marketplace. The National Recovery Act (NRA) and Obamacare have a lot in common. The National Recovery Act like Obamacare was posed as a means to stabilize the market through price fixing. While the NRA was initiated thru executive order, Obamacare brought its own executive arm wrestling to bear. The public did not support either initiative. The NRA was passed on the premise that it would put men back to work. That didn't happen. Obamacare should theoretically insure all Americans. That will not happen. The NRA increased the cost of doing business by as much as 40% at its height. The projections for the increased (already increasing) costs of health care are unfathomable. But what might be the most striking analogy is how the NRA was put to rest. The Supreme Court voted unanimously to strike down the NRA in the famous case Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States. The National Recovery Act allowed for wage and price fixing and in the case of selling chickens, they required the sale of sick chickens. Moreover, and in the case of Schechter, they did not allow for any individual to choose their chicken. Schechter was convicted on many counts including "the violation of the poultry code by selling 'unfit chickens,' illegally selling chickens on an individual basis, avoiding inspections by local poultry regulators, falsifying records of poultry sold, and selling poultry to non-licensed purchasers." Schechter appealed to the Supreme Court. By unanimous decision, the Supreme Court voted to overturn Schechter's conviction, declaring that it violated the separation of powers (remember it was initiated by Executive Directive). But the precedent setting imperative that was established by Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States was the fact that the Supreme Court held that the NRA violated the Commerce clause because Schechter sold his chickens only intrastate and the Commerce clause could not be applied to his business. Like Schechter's chickens, health insurance is sold intrastate and has been regulated at the state level. Medicare remains the exception. It is not implausible for us to see a legal argument developed using Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States as the precedent setting Supreme Court ruling. While the court has interpreted the Commerce clause more broadly over the last several decades, it is plausible that the economic circumstances that allowed for an executive order permitting price fixing in the National Recovery Act might paint the appropriate picture and analogy to overturn a mandate that demands the purchase of state regulated health insurance in order to stabilize the health insurance industry. A Jewish poultry business uprooted the New Deal and the ability of the government to take over private business. That Supreme Court decision allowed for the beginning of the economic recovery. Can we count on this same Jewish poultry farmer to be the precedent making ruling that will overturn Obamacare, the government's attempt to take over our personal opportunity to invest in our own health and our life. The challenge is mammoth but the mission could not be more righteous. One Jewish man's moral obligation to stand in the way of a law that took away the right of his customer to choose their chicken is the simple but moral imperative that every American believes is the constitutional dynamic that is fundamental to our way of life. What better way to address the overreaching mandate in Obamacare? Who ever said one man couldn't change the world was surely wrong when it comes to kosher chickens. I guess it is true and mom was right, chicken soup can cure most everything, even bad legislation. Copyright © 2010 Campaign for Liberty |
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