[Education and Welfare] Fw: [Missouri-l] Supreme Court Will Review Constitutionality of HealthCare Reform

Wed Nov 16 11:53:42 CST 2011

----- Original Message ----- 
From: DeAnna Noriega 
To: missouri-l at moblind.org 
Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2011 8:12 PM
Subject: [Missouri-l] Supreme Court Will Review Constitutionality of HealthCare Reform

From: NHeLP [mailto:no-reply at healthlaw.org] 
Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2011 11:36 AM
To: quieth2o at ktis.net
Subject: Supreme Court Will Review Constitutionality of Health Care Reform

      Having trouble viewing this email? Click here 

You're receiving this email because of your relationship with National Health Law Program. Please confirm your continued interest in receiving email from us. 

You may unsubscribe if you no longer wish to receive our emails.

                              For Immediate Release

                              Tuesday, November 15, 2011

                              Contact: Vincent Eng

                              +1 703 981 6636

                              media at healthlaw.org

                              Supreme Court Will Review Constitutionality of Health Care Reform

                              Washington, DC - Yesterday, as expected, the United States Supreme Court announced plans to hear a constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) - setting the slate for a final decision on the law next year.  The Court granted certiorari in a case from the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Florida v. HHS.  The case is a challenge by 26 state officials and the National Federation of Independent Businesses, and the appellate decision is the only one to date to find that the law exceeds Congress' powers.  

                              "We welcome the Supreme Court's decision to review the ACA," said Emily Spitzer, executive director of NHeLP.  "The law is firmly within Congress' powers to regulate commerce and to continue to improve the Medicaid program. The ACA includes numerous provisions that will expand access to high quality care for nearly millions of Americans."

                              The Supreme Court will allow oral argument on four issues, including the controversial individual mandate and, in a surprise move, the constitutionality of the ACA's Medicaid expansion.  

                              The ACA expands the Medicaid program to improve access to care for low-income adults - primarily the working poor and chronically ill.  The state officials in the Florida case have challenged this provision, arguing the required expansion is coercive and forces states to either comply with or withdraw from the program.  No lower court has accepted this argument.

                              NHeLP has filed the amicus brief in the Florida v. HHS district court and court of appeals cases, addressing the constitutionality of the Medicaid expansion provisions.  

                              "The ACA's Medicaid expansion builds upon the long-standing, decades old structure of the Medicaid program. As it has previously, Congress has improved a program that is effective in reducing the number of uninsured people by offering them access to health care they otherwise would not be able to afford," said Jane Perkins, NHeLP legal director.

                              The Supreme Court will also consider the controversial individual mandate - the requirement that nearly all persons have health insurance.  The Court will resolve a circuit split.  Last week, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals became the second appellate court, joining the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold the constitutionality of the individual mandate.  The federal government has argued that if the individual mandate is found unconstitutional, the provision would be severable from the rest of the law.  The Supreme Court has slated 90 minutes of oral argument to address this issue.

                              ###

                              Founded in 1969, the National Health Law Program works with and on behalf of limited-income people, people with disabilities, and children to improve their access to quality health care and to enforce their legal rights to health. NHeLP works with courts, government agencies, and Congress to ensure quality health care for the most vulnerable members of our society.

                              www.healthlaw.org

                 SUPPORT NHeLP

                              Please consider donating online!

                              QUICK LINKS

                              About NHeLP

                              NHeLP Issues

                              NHeLP Publications

                  NHeLP is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization.  All contributions are tax-deductible.  We rely on generous donors like you! 

                  Please consider donating online!

      Forward email

            This email was sent to quieth2o at ktis.net by no-reply at healthlaw.org |   

            Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribeT | Privacy Policy.

      National Health Law Program | 1444 I Street NW, Suite 1105 | Washington | DC | 20005

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To unsubscribe from the Missouri-L list, send an email message to:
Missouri-l-request at MoBlind.org
with the word, unsubscribe in the subject field.

Other email lists available from MCB include:
ATI - A general discussion of adaptive technology.  To join, send a blank EMail message to:
ATI-Join at MoBlind.Org
Chat - A general discussion list.  Just about anything goes.  To Join, send a blank EMail message to:
Chat-Join at MoBlind.Org

Visit the MCB home Page at:
WWW.MoBlind.Org
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://moblind.org/pipermail/ew_moblind.org/attachments/20111116/65ebc12f/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 1232 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://moblind.org/pipermail/ew_moblind.org/attachments/20111116/65ebc12f/attachment-0004.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image002.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 4550 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://moblind.org/pipermail/ew_moblind.org/attachments/20111116/65ebc12f/attachment-0005.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: ~WRD000.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 823 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://moblind.org/pipermail/ew_moblind.org/attachments/20111116/65ebc12f/attachment-0006.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image003.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 332 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://moblind.org/pipermail/ew_moblind.org/attachments/20111116/65ebc12f/attachment-0007.jpg>