Judge rules health care law's insurance mandate unconstitutional

[Cali_Democrat]

Of course the judge is a Bush appointee

Judge rules health care law's insurance mandate unconstitutional
By the CNN Wire Staff
September 13, 2011 5:33 p.m. EDT

(CNN) -- A Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Tuesday that the provision in President Barack Obama's health care initiative requiring individuals to purchase health insurance is unconstitutional.

The bill, which was passed by the Democratic Congress and signed into law last year, has faced a deluge of lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the individual mandate.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Conner said the provision violates parameters established by the Constitution's commerce clause.

"The power to regulate interstate commerce does not subsume the power to dictate a lifetime financial commitment to health insurance coverage," he wrote in the ruling.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/09/13/pennsylvania.health.care.ruling/

I think the chances are good that the Supreme Court will strike down the Health Care law. It's essentially a GOP court.

Obviously a public option or medicare for all would not have had this issue.

[unblock]

1. not at all clear how this court will rule. sure, they'd love to give obama a defeat, but

they also love governmental control, and the mandate was originally a republican idea.

moreover, it could be argued that it's actually a tax on income, completely permitted by the 16th amendment.

if you make more than the poverty level, then you have to pay the extra tax, which is waived if you buy insurance; alternatively, you get a completely offsetting credit for the extra tax if you buy insurance. it's also waived or credited if insurance would be more than 8% of your income.

regardless of how it's drafted, it's arguably a straightforward income tax.

so even if the supremos don't buy the commerce clause argument, there's also the income tax argument.

[Dragonfli]

2. The Supreme court will rule it constitutional, the mandate is there to benefit profiteers /nt

[pepito]

3. makes sense

how can the government make a person buy insurance from a private for profit company?

[Dragonfli]

4. Usually by buying people within the Government, this time it hit a temporary snag /nt