The Republican-led House of Representatives voted Wednesday to delay the tax penalty Americans will pay under President Obama's healthcare law if they decline to sign up for coverage this year.
The bill passed with support from 27 Democrats, including Minnesota congressmen Rick Nolan and Collin Peterson, backing the legislation.
The individual mandate requires most Americans to be enrolled in health coverage by March 31 or pay a tax penalty. The House legislation would delay the fine for one year.
The bill is expected to stall in the Democratic-controlled Senate and would face a White House veto even if it succeeded.
Peterson, a conservative Democrat, has voted for similar measures before.
The Congressional Leadership Fund, a political action committee chaired by former Republican U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman, pounced on Nolan's vote, calling it an "election year conversion."
"He thinks he can pull a fast one on Minnesotans, right? With this vote, he'll show them that he's now protecting individuals from Obamacare, right?" an email from the political action committee read. "Except Minnesotans already know that Rick Nolan is an entrenched supporter of the health care law."
Supporters of the GOP bill argue that individual consumers should be granted a delay because the Obama administration has postponed the implementation of several Affordable Care Act provisions that apply to businesses.
"No American should have to pay a penalty simply because the roll out of the Affordable Care Act has been so confusing. Moreover, if you're going to give an exemption to businesses, you should also give an exemption to individuals. It's only fair," Nolan said in a statement. "We need to take the time to fix the enrollment glitches and get this right – and in the meantime allow the American people the common sense flexibility this one year delay provides."
