The President, Congress, and Health Insurance

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As most people, both in and outside of the US, are aware; the Preisdent and our Congress are trying to "reform" healthcare in the US. While I realize that something needs to be done, I am trying to figure out how the President and Congress decided that they have the authority to do anything about health insurance. All forms of insurance have always been regulated by the individual states. The states have the authority permit or deny companies from operating in each state. The states have the authority to require specific types of policies and coverages. The states are the ones who regulate the sale of all insurance products that are offered and the individuals who sell those products. The states mandate who must purchase specific insurance products and the minimum requirements those products must meet. Each state also determines if there are exceptions to those state mandated requirements. Vehicle insurance is controlled by each state and each state determines which vehicles require insurance and the minimum amount of insurance required for that vehicle. These requirements are not uniform and vary by state. The federal government has nothing to do with vehicle insurance. As a matter of fact, the federal government does not even insure its own government vehicles. Homeowners insurance is regulated by the state; but, the states do not require homeowners to have it. Of course, if you have a mortgage, your lender will require it before they will issue you a loan. Medicare is controlled by the federal government; but, Medicare is not insurance. There are no premiums and no policies. Instead, basic Medicare is paid for by a tax that is deducted from your income; but, you can qualify for Medicare even if you never had an income. Medicare Part B does require a monthly premium which is normally subtracted from the Medicare recipients Social Security income. So, you do not pay for it until you are already receiving Medicare. - This is not insurance. Medicaid is run jointly by the federal and state government. It is not insurance; it is paid for with tax dollars and it is charity for people who cannot afford health insurance or the actual cost of medical care. So, I do not understand how the President and Congress believe they have the authority to mandate health insurance and penalize people who do not run out and buy it. They do not have the authority to mandate what the insurance companies must offer or not offer as benefits. The only authority that the President and Congress do have is the authority to expand Medicare and Medicaid so they cover every person in the US; but, that is not what they are doing. Some of the states are starting to wake up to the fact that state rights are being usurped and are challenging Congress and the President on these issues. There are lawsuits being filed by the states and many states have new initiatives on upcoming election ballots to let their votors decide whether to accept these federal mandates. So, I still do not understand how the President and Congress decided that they have the authority to try to reform healthcare by mandating health insurance? I think they should use the authority they do have to reform healthcare in other ways.