Tag: individual mandate

Commentary: Biden’s Vaccine Mandate Could Rise or Fall Based on 2012 Roberts Ruling on Obamacare Individual Mandate

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“Construing the Commerce Clause to permit Congress to regulate individuals precisely because they are doing nothing would open a new and potentially vast domain to congressional authority.”

That was Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts’ majority opinion ruling in 2012 that the individual mandate to purchase health insurance in the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, was unconstitutional under Congress’ Article I, Section 8 power to regulate interstate commerce.

And yet, the mandate was rescued in the very same decision by Roberts, ruling that penalty under the individual mandate was a valid exercise of Congress’ Article I, Section 8 power to collect taxes.

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Ohio Attorney General Opposes Scrapping All of Obamacare, Breaking With President Trump

Andrew Shirley

Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost announced Wednesday he would oppose President Donald Trump’s plan to completely repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), better known as Obamacare. On December 14, 2018, shortly before the 2019 open enrollment period ended, a contentious and controversial case was finally ruled on by the U.S. Supreme Court. Texas v. Azar challenged that the entire Affordable Care Act was unconstitutional. The case noted that the Supreme Court previously ruled “the Individual Mandate was unconstitutional under the Interstate Commerce Clause but could fairly be read as an exercise of Congress’ Tax Power because it triggered a tax.” However, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act “eliminated that tax,” and “thus compels the conclusion that the Individual Mandate may no longer be upheld under the Tax Power.” “And because the Individual Mandate continues to mandate the purchase of health insurance, it remains unsustainable under the Interstate Commerce Clause—as the Supreme Court already held,” the case added. Based on this, Texas Federal District Court Judge Reed O’Connor made three conclusions: First, the Court finds the Parties satisfy the applicable standing requirements. Second, the Court finds the Individual Mandate can no longer be fairly read as an exercise of Congress’s Tax Power and is…

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CNN Contributer Ezekiel Emanuel says Obamacare Ruling ‘Defies Constitutional Logic’

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by Nick Givas   CNN contributor Ezekiel Emanuel said on “New Day” Monday that a recent court ruling declaring Obamacare unconstitutional “defies constitutional logic.” “That is a ridiculous ruling and you don’t have to rely on a doctor like me,” Dr. Emanuel said. “Lots of conservative legal scholars think it’s a silly ruling. The main logic there is the mandate is so essential to the law that nothing in the law can stand without the mandate.” A federal judge in Texas ruled Obamacare’s individual mandate to be unconstitutional Friday and said it can no longer be viewed as a congressional tax. “The Individual Mandate can no longer be fairly read as an exercise of Congress’s Tax Power and is still impermissible under the Interstate Commerce Clause — meaning the Individual Mandate is unconstitutional,” District Judge Reed O’Connor wrote in his decision. “And the reason you know it’s a silly ruling is we haven’t had a mandate with any enforceability since we passed the tax law because there’s no penalty anymore and much of the law is going forward. Laws like changing how doctors are being paid, improving the quality in hospitals, investing in better workforce for the health care system,”…

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Indiana AG Says Obamacare Ruling Gives Congress Another Shot at Fixing Healthcare

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by Nick Givas   Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill said Friday’s Obamacare ruling from a federal judge in Texas gives Congress another shot at fixing America’s healthcare system. “The Individual Mandate can no longer be fairly read as an exercise of Congress’s Tax Power and is still impermissible under the Interstate Commerce Clause — meaning the Individual Mandate is unconstitutional,” District Judge Reed O’Connor wrote in his decision. “Obamacare was predicated on the ability to tax — Congress’ authority to tax. And that’s what the Supreme Court decided in 2012,” Hill said on “Fox & Friends” Monday. “This is an opportunity for Congress to act. This — our decision — the attorney generals in the state and the United States made a decision based on the law and the constitutionality of this process. Now Congress has to go to work and make sure that we do find ways to constitutionally provide healthcare for all-American citizens,” he continued. Hill said there is no longer a constitutional justification for Obamacare after the tax elements were removed and therefore the law should be struck down. “It’s really a matter of Congress’ authority to tax and once the tax was removed, there’s no longer…

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Federal Judge Ends Obamacare!

Jason M. Reynolds
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A federal court has ruled that all of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, is unconstitutional based on the individual mandate that requires people to have insurance and how that affects a new tax law. The ruling came just before Saturday, which is the deadline to enroll for Obamacare for the year. Judge Reed O’Connor of the U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas found the ACA unconstitutional in a ruling in Texas v. United States, which he issued Friday night, The Washington Post said. Congress in August set the individual mandate penalty to $0 in new tax legislation, The Washington Times said. The $0 penalty could affect a 2012 Supreme Court decision finding Obamacare constitutional because Congress has the power to tax, according to CBS News. But if there is no penalty, the tax does not exist, the plaintiffs said. California’s Attorney General, Xavier Becerra, has fought against the plaintiffs in Texas v. United States. He said in a statement, “Today’s ruling is an assault on 133 million Americans with preexisting conditions, on the 20 million Americans who rely on the ACA for healthcare, and on America’s faithful progress toward affordable healthcare for all Americans. The ACA has already…

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