Federal judge says Virginia challenge to health reform law may proceed

Aug 3 2010

USA Today On Deadline Blog: "A federal judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the state of Virginia that challenges the new health care reform act, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports." The suit, filed by Ken Cuccinelli, Virginia's state attorney general, "challenged a provision of the health care act that requires individuals to buy health insurance or pay a penalty" (Stanglin, 8/2).

Bloomberg Businessweek: "U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson in Richmond, Virginia, today denied a U.S. Justice Department request to throw out the suit, rejecting arguments that the state had no right to sue. Virginia, in a lawsuit filed in March, had complained that the U.S. Congress had unconstitutionally exceeded its powers in requiring individuals to buy insurance" (Harris and McQuillen, 8/2).

The Associated Press: With this ruling, the lawsuit cleared it's "first legal hurdle" as Judge Hudson noted that the reform law "raises a host of complex constitutional issues." Already this year the Virginia General Assembly approved legislatioin exempting the state's residents "from the federal coverage mandate" (Felberbaum, 8/2).

The Roanoke Times: "In a 32-page opinion, Hudson ruled that the existence of the state law 'is sufficient to trigger the duty of the Attorney General of Virginia to defend the law and the associated sovereign power to enact it.' A full hearing on Virginia's lawsuit is scheduled for October. Hudson underscored that his ruling today is limited to whether Virginia has standing to challenge the federal law" (Sluss, 8/2).

The Virginian-Pilot: "Hudson wrote in his Aug. 2 opinion that the murky question of 'whether or not Congress has the power to regulate -- and tax -- a citizen's decision not to participate in interstate commerce' is one that hasn't been 'squarely addressed' by federal courts. And because both sides made cogent legal arguments on that point, Hudson added, he has declined to toss the case out of court" (Walker, 8/2).

The Washington Post: "The lawsuit ... argues that Congress overstepped its constitutional authority when it included a provision in the law mandating that citizens purchase health insurance by 2014 or pay a fine. Cuccinelli filed the suit moments after President Obama signed the sweeping health-care bill into law, citing the federal law's conflict with a new Virginia statute that made it illegal to require state residents to purchase health insurance." This ruling will pave the way "for a full hearing on the legal arguments of the issue" in October (Heiderman, 8/2).

The Wall Street Journal's Law Blog: "The ruling represents a setback that will force the Obama administration to mount a lengthy legal defense of the law. The suit ...  alleges that the law's requirement that its residents have health insurance violates the Commerce Clause of the Constitution" (Jones, 8/2).