The video drew more than 600,000 views within 36 hours. More traditionally, Americans for Prosperity , the free-market advocacy group that spent more than $33 million to try to defeat Obama in the 2012 election, has hosted telephone forums and town-hall-style meetings as part of a 35-state campaign to block the healthcare law. "We now have a funded, professional, logistically proficient infrastructure that, when one of these fights [arises] can really spring into action," said Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips. The House vote Friday illustrated the fervor of the battle. After months of largely symbolic votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the chamber's most conservative Republican lawmakers backed the GOP leadership into a corner, insisting that future government spending be linked to suspension of funding for the healthcare law. Without a compromise, many nonessential government agencies will shut their doors when the budget year ends Sept. 30, the eve of the law's enrollment period. Beyond the squabbling over a government shutdown, the stakes for Obama in the success of his signature legislative achievement are immense.

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Examining your health insurance options under Obamacare

 

 You can start signing up for health insurance Tuesday through Covered California, the state's new marketplace. The earliest policies take effect is Jan. 1. You'll need to buy a health plan no later than Dec. 15 if you want your benefits to kick in at the start of the year. Enrollment for the state exchange runs through March 31. Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program, accepts applicants year round.

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New health insurance exchanges want young, healthy people





Halpern Said He Wants To See What Obamacare Costs Him Before Signing Up.

 In November, when he turns 26, he'll no longer be covered by his mother's health plan. The new law mandates coverage for most Americans, but the penalties for opting out can be cheap ? less than $100 in some cases. Halpern said he wants to see what Obamacare costs him before signing up. "I can see why some young people would shy away," Halpern said. The stakes are high. Nationwide, the Obama administration estimates it needs about 40% of the 7 million people expected to enroll the first year to be young and healthy to help mitigate the costs of the chronically ill. In California, about 31% of people ages 18 to 34 are uninsured, compared with 27% nationally. The figures are even higher in Los Angeles, where nearly 40% of young adults lack coverage. "If healthy people don't enroll, insurers will start to increase premiums," said Christine Eibner, a healthcare economist at Rand Corp., a Santa Monica think tank.

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