A federal judge in Virgina has just ruled that a portion of the health care reform law implemented by President Obama violates the Constitution. U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson is the first judge to rule against the law. Two other judges, in Florida and Michigan had ruled in favor of it.
Hudson’sruling may provide support for the more than 20 federal lawsuits that have been filed against the health legislation since Obama signed it in March. The suit was filed by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli. Specifically, the lawsuit challenges the law’s requirement that citizens buy health insurance or pay a penalty.
All of the cases, albeit different in scope, rest on the assertion that Congress lacks the constitutional authority to mandate that Americans carry health insurance or pay a fee. The individual mandate doesn’t take effect until 2014. Even so, already some states have started planning to create new health-insurance exchanges for consumers to shop for insurance. Other lawsuits also suggest that the law’s expansion of Medicaid to 16 million additional Americans places an unfair burden on states, making it an issue of states’ rights.
