Final answer:
The Individual Mandate provision in the Patient Protection and ACA requires individuals without employer or government program health care to obtain insurance or face a fine. It aims to reduce adverse selection and keep prices down by requiring all consumers to have health insurance, even the healthiest ones.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Individual Mandate is a provision included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires all individuals who do not receive health care through their employer or a government program to have health insurance or pay a fine. The goal of the Individual Mandate is to reduce the adverse selection problem and keep prices down by requiring all consumers to have health insurance, including the healthiest individuals. Without the need to guard against adverse selection, health insurance companies can provide more reasonable plans to their customers.