A coalition of conservatives and
other privacy activists have succeeded in blowing the whistle on the dictatorial
powers contained within the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act, model
legislation that is being pushed on the states by the Department of Health &
Human Services. But this is a battle that has yet to be won and some of the
biggest tests for the grassroots defenders of our constitutional liberties are
yet to come. MEHPA has absorbed setbacks in a number of state legislatures, but
it can die and then come back to life two years later given the reality of the
law-making processes in state legislatures.
Because that is
the case, it is important to remind the grassroots that the fight to protect our
constitutional liberties is taking place not just in the corridors of Congress
and Federal agencies and departments. Your state legislature can do just as much
harm to your freedom and right to privacy if it votes to implement MEHPA.
To refresh your
memory, MEHPA became the cause du jour for the lobbies that like `command and
control' policies that -- coincidentally -- just happen to put them in charge
over the lives of you and your family. Not surprisingly, MEHPA's number one
proponent and author is Lawrence O. Gostin, former member of the Clinton health
care task force.
America was
spared that Frankenstein monster of a health care plan -- at least temporarily
-- but Gostin remains undeterred in his quest to find ways to vest bureaucrats
with more power. MEHPA's combination of deliberately vague definitions of
emergencies and the very specific powers that would be granted to health care
bureaucrats in the event of such emergencies had the potential to allow the Left
to accomplish highly prized items of its agenda through the backdoor. Because
conservatives sounded the alarm, Gostin redrew MEHPA to make it appear less
threatening to civil liberties.
One of the most
important things activists need to do in their state is to make sure the
definition of emergency adequately defines the circumstances that will truly be
catastrophic. For instance, in Maryland, activists helped persuade the
legislature to require the governor to declare a "catastrophic health emergency"
only if there is an imminent threat of significant loss of life or disability
caused by exposure to anthrax, ebola, plague, smallpox, poisonous gases, or
deadly radiation.
That is certainly
a more reasonable and precise definition than what was in the original MEHPA.
Several other states placed strict sunset provisions on the legislation.
Activists should be sure the MEHPA bill in their state vests strong oversight
powers with the state legislature, something that was obviously of little
concern to Gostin and his followers when drawing up the original MEHPA.
The early version
of the MEHPA model bill, thanks to its vague wording, would have granted
governors the power to declare such emergencies to counter an "epidemic" of
violence or obesity. If Gostin was able to have his original wish, your state's
governor would have had the power to seize your favorite candy bar or the Civil
War rifle that is a family heirloom.
An aroused
citizenry outraged at the efforts to foist on us this legislation that would be
hazardous to our civil liberties helped to scuttle bills in the following states
over the past year: Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma,
California, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Connecticut.
But this battle
is an ongoing one and MEHPA will be considered in many states this year and
could easily resurface in those states mentioned above that either shelved or
defeated MEHPA. States with MEHPA laws on the books, particularly if they were
improved over the Gostin-favored version, are at risk of having the legislation
amended to give the bureaucrats what they want.
Now that
activists have succeeded in sounding the alarm about the power grab instituted
by Gostin, HHS, and the organizations that promote their authority at the
expense of our freedom and liberty, I worry that we will let down our guard.
Now is not the
time to give up the fight in the belief that the tide has turned. The Left never
expected the passionate opposition that MEHPA generated. Now they know. Count on
the Left's medical-bureaucratic complex to keep pushing and promoting MEHPA as
important to protecting the public's health, using modified versions that are
more carefully worded but can have the same adverse impact on our constitutional
liberties as the original model bill.
It's also
important to realize that safe and sane alternatives to MEHPA are being promoted
by organizations such as the American Legislative Exchange Council. These plans
will not abuse our freedom and will truly protect the public's health in the
event that a real medical emergency occurs.
We caught the
Left's medical-bureaucratic complex red-handed in attempting their legislative
coups and shook them up. But grassroots conservative and privacy activists and
anyone else who values freedom and liberty should not think this battle is over
by any stretch. The fight continues....and it will be fought in your state
capitol soon.
Paul M. Weyrich is Chairman and CEO of the Free Congress Foundation.
Paul M.
Weyrich's November 19, 2001 commentary on "Another Conservative Gone Native"
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YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.
A coalition of conservatives and
other privacy activists have succeeded in blowing the whistle on the dictatorial
powers contained within the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act, model
legislation that is being pushed on the states by the Department of Health &
Human Services. But this is a battle that has yet to be won and some of the
biggest tests for the grassroots defenders of our constitutional liberties are
yet to come. MEHPA has absorbed setbacks in a number of state legislatures, but
it can die and then come back to life two years later given the reality of the
law-making processes in state legislatures.