Ohio cleared to opt out of Affordable Health Care Act

Ohio Health-Care cleared for the fall ballot.

Ohio wants to send a message to the Obama administration "Keep health care between doctors and patients, and keep bureaucrats out of it." Voters in Ohio will get the chance to decide whether Ohio can opt out of the national health care overhaul after the state's top election official said Tuesday that opponents of the federal law have enough signatures to put a constitutional amendment on the Nov. 8 ballot. Ohio has 427,000 valid signatures. They had submitted more than 546,000 and needed roughly 358,000 of them validated to make it on to the ballot.

The measure would change the Ohio Constitution to prohibit any federal, state or local law from forcing Ohio residents, employers or health care providers to participate in a health care system. It also would prevent the state from enacting a Massachusetts-style health care program, where the state requires a minimum level of insurance coverage.

If passed, the amendment would not apply to any law or rule in effect before March 19, 2010, so as not to prohibit Ohioans for participating in programs such as Medicare.

A coalition of tea party organizations, small government advocates and religious groups gathered the signatures to get the health care measure on the ballot and now plan to mount a statewide campaign in support of it.

The coalition has more than 35,000 volunteers, an "army of grass roots support," ready to mobilize to raise money to turn out voters in November's election, said Jeff Longstreth, campaign manager for Ohioans for Healthcare Freedom, a group that played a large role in the petitions.

Obamacare is a job killer, it has been a disaster for the country and the economy, and the bulk of it doesn't even kick in until 2014.