Guy Lilavois is ``invincible.''

He's not a superhero -- just healthy, happy and voluntarily uninsured.

``I haven't needed it,'' says Lilavois, a 35-year-old, call-center manager from Miramar who dropped his medical insurance plan five years ago. ``I lead a healthy lifestyle. I eat a proper diet. I use herbal remedies. And I haven't been sick -- not so much as a flu -- for years. So why would I spend money on an insurance plan that I'm not using? It's not cost-effective.''

Agree or disagree with Lilavois' strategy, healthcare-policy experts and even the politicians debating reform measures have taken notice of the so-called ``invincibles,'' people in their late teens to mid-30s who choose to be uninsured because they're convinced that their relative youth and/or healthy lifestyles make an insurance-free life worth the gamble.

That gamble has become a crucial point in the debate over healthcare reform and how to pay for it, as the proposals in Congress would mandate that everyone buy insurance or face steep penalties. Supporters of mandatory coverage, including President Barack Obama, say it's a key step in making insurance affordable for everyone.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 19 million people age 18 to 34 don't have health insurance. That's about 27 percent of people in that age range -- the largest segment of Americans to go without.

There are no numbers for how many of those go without coverage by choice, but for many like Lilavois the issue comes down to saving hundreds of dollars or more in monthly premiums and banking on healthy, low-risk lifestyles that will keep them out of doctors offices and emergency rooms.

``There's a reason they call them `invincibles,' '' says Steven Ullmann, a healthcare-policy expert at the University of Miami.

``They are young. They are healthy -- even those who don't lead particularly healthy lifestyles tend to be very healthy, more so than young children, Baby Boomers, or the elderly. . . . To many, health insurance at their age is viewed as just another monthly bill.''

UNFAIR?

Come Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee might move one step closer to taking this choice out of the hands of the invincibles, when it is scheduled to vote on its healthcare-reform bill.

The committee's bill, as well as versions in the House of Representatives, include plans for ``individual mandates'' that would require all American adults to purchase insurance policies or face financial penalties.

Lilavois doesn't think that's fair. ``If it was true health insurance, then it would cover the things that I do to maintain my good health, like eat right, exercise and not put myself in risky situations,'' he reasons.

OBAMA'S SPEECH

But supporters of mandatory coverage say that given the nature of insurance, it's necessary to have everyone in the insurance pool -- whether or not they think they need insurance. Those views were articulated by Obama in his speech to a joint session of Congress last month.

``Now, even if we provide these affordable options, there may be those -- particularly the young and healthy -- who still want to take the risk and go without coverage. . . . The problem is, such irresponsible behavior costs all the rest of us money. If there are affordable options and people still don't sign up for health insurance, it means we pay for those people's expensive emergency-room visits,'' he said.

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