Northern Florida District Court Judge Roger Vinsons ruling, declaring the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act unconstitutional and void, has left parties on both sides of the lawsuit to ponder their next bit of legal strategem as the case winds its way through the judicial system.
The U.S. Justice Department announced it will appeal the ruling to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, and consider seeking a stay to allow the health care law to stand during the appeals process.
We are analyzing this opinion to determine what steps, if any -- including seeking a stay -- are necessary while the appeal is pending to continue our progress toward ensuring that Americans do not lose out on the important protections this law provides, that the millions of children and adults who depend on Medicaid programs receive the care the law requires, and that the millions of seniors on Medicare receive the benefits they need, said Tracy Schmaler, deputy director of the Justice Departments Office of Public Affairs.
But the administration's ongoing implementation of the law in the face of Vinson's ruling risks a contempt-of-court sanction, says one legal scholar.
"I was shocked when I read they were going to go forward and implement law. That's a fairly brazen disregard for a court order," Robert Alt, deputy director and senior legal fellow of the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the conservative Heritage Foundation, told Sunshine State News.
Though Vinson did not issue an injunction as part of his ruling, Alt said the judge's "declaratory judgment" makes injunction unnecessary.
"He already issued the order. It's already taken effect," Alt said from his Washington, D.C., office.
Meanwhile, Florida and the 25 other states involved in the lawsuit against the health care law backed by President Barack Obama may ask for an expedited appeal to speed up the process of getting the case to the Supreme Court, where most observers believe the case, or similar cases already pending, will ultimately be decided.
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who inherited the lawsuit from former Attorney General Bill McCollum, said Tuesday she will confer with the attorneys general from other states involved in the lawsuit, as well as other business interests named in the suit, before deciding the next step in the process.
Well discuss (the possibility of an expedited appeal) as a group. We have a team of lawyers analyzing the opinion, Bondi said.
Late Tuesday she added, "We are continuing to evaluate the order and the Department of Justice's compliance with it. The judge clearly stated that the declaratory relief is tantamount to an injunction -- this should be respected by the federal government." Legal scholars say that any one of the 26 states has standing to take the federal government back to court over its implementation of the law.
Lester Perling, a partner of the Fort Lauderdale law firm of Broad and Cassel, said, "The plaintiff states could ask the appellate court to order implementation of Vinson's order pending the appeal. That is why the governmenthad to ask the appellate court for a stay.
"That is just a technical, procedural move that the government had to go through. The appellate court will very likely stay Vinson's decision and the government will proceed with its implementation," said Perling, chair of the Health Law Section of the Florida Bar.
The Florida case is the second decision -- both issued by federal judges appointed by Republican presidents -- to declare at least part of the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, and opinions in two other cases -- both issued by federal judges appointed by Democratic presidents -- have upheld the law.
Bondi stopped short of saying the Florida case should be the one eventually picked by the Supreme Court to review, but boasted of Judge Vinsons decision.
I think the Supreme Court will gather them all, hear them all. So far, we have received the best ruling in the country, Bondi said.
The crux of the fight over the law is its provision of an individual mandate, or requirement that people buy health insurance or face fines from the government. Florida and other states involved in the lawsuit contend that provision is outside the bounds of Congresss powers outlined in the Constitution, while President Obama and Justice Department lawyers say the law is in accordance with the Commerce Clause in the Constitution that allows Congress to regulate interstate commerce. The individual mandate isnt scheduled to take effect until 2014.
Judge Vinson took the view of the 26 states in the case, but went further than a previous ruling in Virginia that struck down only the individual mandate, stipulating that because there is no severability clause in the law, the entire law must be scrapped.
I must conclude that the individual mandate and the remaining provisions are inextricably bound together in purpose and must stand or fall as a single unit, Judge Vinson stated in his ruling.
If the case makes it to the Supreme Court, it will not be heard until 2012 at the earliest, but congressional Republicans, fresh off their sweeping electoral victories last fall, are trying to provide a cure for the health care law before it gets that far.
Senate Republicans introduced a bill Tuesday that would allow states to opt out of the individual mandate and other provisions in the health care law, such as the expansion of Medicaid. On Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., also pushed for a complete repeal of the Affordable Care Act as an amendment to legislation dealing with the Federal Aviation Administration.
As the lawsuit makes its way through the courts, Gov. Rick Scott is not in a hurry to ready Florida to implement the provisions in the law, many of which wont take effect until 2014. Scott said Tuesday he ultimately expects the law, if its not to be declared void by the courts, to be repealed by Congress.
I personally always believed that it was going to be repealed. We are not going to spend a lot of time and money with regard to trying to get ready to implement it, Scott said, adding later that Florida will be prepared if the health care law is eventually upheld.
Reach Gray Rohrer at grohrer@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859; Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com.
