Rep. Scott Plakon | Credit: myfloridahouse.gov- Meredith Geddings

The Florida House joined the Senate in forwarding a proposed constitutional amendment to voters Wednesday afternoon, allowing residents of the Sunshine State to opt out of the federal health-care law backed by President Barack Obama. The proposed amendment passed the House on a near party-lines vote, 80-37.

The Senate passed the Health Care Freedom Act, a top priority of Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, on the second day of the session. A similar proposed amendment backed by the Legislature was removed from the 2010 ballot by the state Supreme Court. If the proposed amendment is not removed from the ballot again, Floridians will have the chance to vote on it in November 2012. For it to pass, the amendment needs to garner 60 percent of the vote.

In an often emotional debate, in which House Speaker Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, had to intervene to cool down rising tensions, the two sides clashed on the issue during limited debate.

Rep. Scott Plakon, R-Longwood, introduced the proposed amendment, and insisted that all members of the House back health-care freedom.

“We have the opportunity today to take the first steps to giving Floridians medical freedom,” said Plakon.

Republicans warned about the federal government undermining liberty by relying on an individual mandate in the health-care law.

Having already filed to run for Congress in 2012, Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda, waded into national issues, insisting on calling the health-care law “Obamacare” and said he thought it was the most divisive issue in America since Vietnam.

“I can make money off this but this is fundamentally wrong,” said Kreegel, who is a doctor. Kreegel taunted Democrats saying that the Republicans picking up five seats in the Florida House in the 2010 elections was a referendum on the federal health-care law.

“Push back against the evils of socialism in voting for this great bill,” said Rep. Ritch Workman, R-Melbourne, who referred to his family moving from Canada to escape a socialistic system.

Rep. John Wood, R-Haines City, took exception to the notion that Republicans in the Legislature were hypocritical in imposing mandates at the state level while opposing them at the federal level.

“The powers of the federal government are limited,” said Wood. “The powers of the state government are unlimited.”

Wood claimed that state mandates were legal -- mentioning the state health-care plan backed by then-Gov. Mitt Romney, of Massachusetts, one of the leading candidates for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.

Democrats insisted that Florida voters were not clamoring for the amendment.

“We don’t need this joint resolution,” said Democratic Leader Pro Tempore Job Gibbons of Pembroke Park. “Polls show that Floridians don’t want to repeal the Affordable Care Act.”

“What a difference a year makes,” said Rep. Darren Soto, D-Orlando, who admitted that the Democrats lost badly in 2010 but insisted that the political pendulum had swung back against the Republicans.

Soto insisted that the proposed congressional budget backed by Republicans led by U.S. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin had changed the political ballgame. “Down with Ryan care,” Soto insisted was the new political rallying cry. “The Republican alternative stinks when it comes to health care.”

The Republican leadership celebrated the House forwarding the proposed amendment.

“The Health Care Freedom Act is an important measure that will preserve the right of Floridians to make their own health care decisions,” said Cannon. “I commend my colleague, Senate President Mike Haridopolos, for championing this legislation from the beginning, and I applaud Representative Scott Plakon for leading the House effort to pass this important proposed amendment.”