4th Circuit Court Of Appeals Overrules District Court Ruling Against Obamacare Saying State Of Virginia Had No Right To Bring The Lawsuit

The Wall Street Journal Law Blog reports:

The Fourth Circuit today rejected a pair of challenges to last year’s federal health-care overhaul, providing a boost to the Obama administration.

Here’s a report from WSJ’s Brent Kendall.

In one ruling, the Fourth Circuit threw out a December 2010 trial-court decision that struck down the health law’s requirement that individuals carry health insurance or pay a penalty. That case involved a challenge brought by Virginia Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli. The Fourth Circuit ruled that Cuccinelli didn’t have a legal right to bring his lawsuit, WSJ reports. (Click here to read the opinion.)

In a second case, the Fourth Circuit ruled that the insurance-mandate penalties amounted to taxes, which meant the court had no jurisdiction over the case. The appeals court said it wasn’t permitted to consider a legal challenge that sought to restrain the government’s assessment of taxes, according to WSJ.

The court’s ruling on that issue deepens a disagreement in the federal courts over how to interpret the health law. Other courts have ruled that the insurance-mandate penalties aren’t taxes. The 11th Circuit ruled Aug. 12 that the insurance mandate was unconstitutional. The Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati, however, has upheld the law.

It is a near-certainty that the Supreme Court will eventually resolve the dispute, WSJ reports.

Tweet