The Current State of Florida’s Law Suit Against Health Care Reform

Case Status

The State of Florida’s case against Obamacare is filed in the State’s Northern District.  20 other states have joined the suit as plantifs (Arizona, Indiana, Mississippi, Nevada, North Dakota, Alabama, Colorado, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Georgia, Alaska, and Oklahoma).  Judge Roger Vinson heard a motion to dismiss this case (3:10-cv-91) in September and will be and has ruled that the case to block Obamacare may go forward.  With that positive decision, oral arguments on the motion(s) for Summary judgement are scheduled for December 16th.

The judge commented on his decision:

“In this order, I have not attempted to determine whether the line between constitutional and extraconstitutional government has been crossed,” Vinson, of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, wrote in his ruling.

“I am only saying that … the plaintiffs have at least stated a plausible claim that the line has been crossed,” Vinson said.

The Complaint:

Florida (et al) are challenging the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s inclusion of the individual health insurance mandate.  This suit claims that Congress is exceeding its authority not only by forcing consumers to buy insurance, but also because Congress is trying to control the budgetary process and legislative agendas of the plaintiff states.

• The Complaint cites sections 2 and 9 of Article I, and states that the federal government cannot use the mandate as a means to impose a direct tax
• The Plaintiffs argue that Obamacare violates the Tenth Amendment: a mandate that forces individuals to either have health insurance coverage or pay a penalty is unconstitutional.

States where Medicare is already stretching the annual budget, such as Florida, simply cannot afford the increased costs attributable to the new requirements imposed by Obamacare.

*sources

• healthcarelawsuits.org: https://healthcarelawsuits.org/detail.php?c=2171284&t=State-of-Florida-v.-U.S.-Department-of-Health-and-Human-Resources
• Florida’s State site: https://www.healthcarelawsuit.us/