No aspect of President Obama’s healthcare law is more contentious than the requirement that individuals purchase health insurance the government deems acceptable or pay a penalty.

Obama himself originally opposed the individual mandate in his 2008 primary fight during the Democratic National Convention, before embracing it as president. The provision was one vote away from being wiped out by the U.S. Supreme Court, a decision that could have taken the rest of the law down with it. It still remains highly unpopular — with 64 percent of Americans having an unfavorable view of the provision, according to a December tracking poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation.