A group of Democratic attorneys general announced Jan. 3 that they are appealing a federal judge’s ruling striking down the Affordable Care Act.
Sixteen states, led by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and other Democratic attorneys general, are appealing the December ruling by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Texas striking down the Affordable Care Act to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
O’Connor had ruled that the individual mandate to have health insurance is unconstitutional, so therefore, the rest of the health law cannot stand.
The case originated with 20 GOP-led states, led by Texas and Wisconsin, suing the federal government to repeal the ACA. They argued that since Congress repealed the individual mandate in last year’s tax law, the ACA is unconstitutional. The Department of Justice sided with Texas.
"We may be a relatively small state, but we’ve played an active role in this litigation to protect our people’s health care," Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said on a conference call with other AGs on Jan. 3. "We believe the trial judge’s decision is legally flawed."
Rosenblum said the ACA doesn't violate the Constitution, and furthermore the individual mandate could be severed from the rest of the law.
The U.S. House, which is now controlled by Democrats, will vote next week on whether to intervene in the litigation to defend the law.