Hail to the chief (justice, that is)

Finally, a prominent conservative has shown leadership, wisdom and common sense! [“Supreme Court upholds Obama health law,” seattletimes.com, June 28.]

Chief Justice John Roberts’ decision to agree with the more progressive members of the Supreme Court in upholding the individual mandate provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is potentially a huge step forward for our country.

Progressives and independents are willing to work with conservatives to make the law better and more cost-effective.

Will any other prominent conservatives join Roberts in admitting the act is now the law of the land? Will any of them speak out in favor of working together to improve it, rather than continuing to try and repeal it — a now virtually impossible task?

This law has been at the center of what has been tearing our nation apart for years. Please, let us all use this verdict to begin putting our country back together again. We can start by no longer calling it Obamacare, now that it has been passed into law by Congress and declared constitutional by the Supreme Court.

— David Barker, Seattle

A boon for this family

I have a family member with an autoimmune disease. Like many young people, her job does not give her health insurance. Without her medication, she would become seriously ill very quickly. She certainly couldn’t work.

So the Supreme Court ruling [on the Affordable Care Act] was a relief. However, it also showed me my own prejudges about the justices and the news coverage. Because of the coverage, I never dreamed that Justice John Roberts would decide in the bill’s favor. But the ruling showed a man who was committed to the law, not partisan politics.

We, as a nation, need to look for ways to work together instead of taking a “them and us” hard line. This ruling gave me hope that maybe we can do it.

— Ann Bergstrom, Shoreline

Fuel for Romney

The Supreme Court ruled that a tax on purchasing behavior is constitutional. We shouldn’t be surprised because this is what Congress has always been allowed.

In order for you to reduce your taxes, now there is a new question on your 1040 like those seen below that you can answer in the affirmative. If you cannot, then you will pay higher taxes.

Do you hold a mortgage?

Did you pay property taxes?

Have you paid for college tuition?

Did you give to charity?

Have you purchased health care?

Although President Obama sold the new health-care law on the basis there was no tax increase, his lawyers argued otherwise and rightly won. I suppose an amendment to the Constitution is necessary to prevent Congress from creating tax-based laws to influence behavior.

In the meantime, the president’s foes can claim he raised taxes, and the politically expedient way to rid the nation of Obamacare is to vote for Mitt Romney.

— Thomas Cook, Leavenworth

Continue momentum toward care

As a nurse, and a member of the Healthy Washington Coalition, I wholeheartedly agree with Sen. Karen Keiser’s perspective that continued health-care reform in Washington state is inevitable regardless of the Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act [“State must lead on health care,” Opinion, June 21.]

Health-care reforms are already well under way, and progress is being made. As nurses on the front lines of health-care delivery, we’re already seeing the positive effects of reform, such as increased coverage for young adults and better access to preventive care.

We as a coalition are confident that our state will continue its momentum toward increasing access to high-quality, affordable health care for all Washingtonians. We know that nothing will deter nurses from working as leaders and advocates in our state’s movement toward making this vision a reality.

— Judy Huntington, executive director of Washington State Nurses Association, Seattle