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WASHINGTON — A U.S. judge in Virginia on Monday declared unconstitutional a key part of President Barack Obama's landmark healthcare law in the first major setback on an issue that will likely end up at the Supreme Court.
Read the Va. judge's ruling on the health care law (.pdf)
U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson, appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush in 2002, backed arguments by the state of Virginia that Congress exceeded its authority by requiring that individuals buy health insurance by 2014 or face a fine.
The Minimum Essential Coverage Provision is neither within the letter nor the spirit of the Constitution," Hudson wrote in a 42-page decision.
The Obama administration will likely appeal as the law has become a cornerstone of Obama's presidency, aiming to expand health insurance to cover millions of uninsured Americans while curbing costs.
The healthcare industry opposed Obama's reform but insurers, which include companies such as Aetna Inc and WellPoint Inc, favor the individual mandate as it means more customers.
Shares of health insurers rose as investors saw the ruling as evidence that the healthcare law can be adjusted in the courts without a full overhaul and the uncertainty that would accompany it.
Virginia's lawyers argued that the federal government could not regulate someone for not buying a good or service under the U.S. Constitution's Commerce Clause and could not penalize them for failing to buy health insurance.
Slam dunk. You Bon Bon eating lazy asses had better get used to news like this because Obamacare will never, ever happen. Nice try, though.
Read the Va. judge's ruling on the health care law (.pdf)
U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson, appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush in 2002, backed arguments by the state of Virginia that Congress exceeded its authority by requiring that individuals buy health insurance by 2014 or face a fine.
The Minimum Essential Coverage Provision is neither within the letter nor the spirit of the Constitution," Hudson wrote in a 42-page decision.
The Obama administration will likely appeal as the law has become a cornerstone of Obama's presidency, aiming to expand health insurance to cover millions of uninsured Americans while curbing costs.
The healthcare industry opposed Obama's reform but insurers, which include companies such as Aetna Inc and WellPoint Inc, favor the individual mandate as it means more customers.
Shares of health insurers rose as investors saw the ruling as evidence that the healthcare law can be adjusted in the courts without a full overhaul and the uncertainty that would accompany it.
Virginia's lawyers argued that the federal government could not regulate someone for not buying a good or service under the U.S. Constitution's Commerce Clause and could not penalize them for failing to buy health insurance.
Slam dunk. You Bon Bon eating lazy asses had better get used to news like this because Obamacare will never, ever happen. Nice try, though.