The 2012 election will be a long fought hard struggle between the Republicans and Democrats. A key issue will be the health insurance debate. The legacy of the Clinton years had the US enjoying peace and the deficit was paid in full. When Bill Clinton left office, the US had a surplus, or money in the bank, and the Budget Office predicted that the US would have a surplus well into the foreseeable future.

George Bush squandered the surplus on two ill-advised wars in Iraq and Afghanistan while offering tax cuts to the rich. During his administration the Medicare Part D program was created which subsidized access to prescription drugs. The cost of this program has risen to $55 billion per year.

In 2008, the world economy crashed and a worldwide recession left millions of US citizens jobless. Millions lost their homes as well as their health insurance. These people, once productive members of society, suddenly found themselves depending on government assistance for food, unemployment benefits and health care coverage. The cost has been staggering and has left both Democrats and Republicans blaming each other for the mess that has been created.

Although the Budget Office predicts that the health care legislation that was passed in 2011 will trim health costs in the future, the immediate impact is a whopping $100 billion dollars. The Republicans argue that the country cannot afford to implement such an expensive program. The Democrats believe that not doing so will in the long run bring more devastation to the economy as the health of the nation's workforce declines. Therefore, it is certain that the health insurance debate will be a major factor in the 2012 elections.

While lawmakers at the federal level debate the health care issues that this country will face not only in the 2012 elections but into the next decade, individual states are also taking up the issue. Recently the Alabama Legislature passed a bill giving small businesses with fewer than 25 employees a cut on their state income tax of 150 percent if they offer health care benefits for their employees.

Although the bill was a result of the Republican "Handshake with Alabama" campaign during the 2010 elections, it received bipartisan support from both parties. Opponents of the bill say that the loss of $10 million a year in revenue will be translated into more spending cuts for education.

It is obvious that the health care debate that will be a major part of the 2012 elections will not only be an issue at the federal level but will impact state elections. The states struggle with the issue that impacts their residents and the future of the state's economy.