Supreme Court Upholds “Obamacare”

In perhaps its most anticipated ruling in years, on June 28 the U.S. Supreme Court upheld most of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), often referred to as Obamacare. By a 5–4 vote, the Court affirmed the basic constitutionality of the health care reform law’s key provision—the so-called individual mandate. At the same time, the Court imposed a limit on the federal government’s ability to compel states to participate in an expansion of Medicare, the government-run health insurance program for Americans over 65. The PPACA, President Obama’s “signature” legislation, was signed into law in March 2010 (see here).

The crux of the legal challenge to the law centered on the constitutionality of the individual mandate, which requires that every U.S. citizen be covered by health insurance by 2014, or else be penalized. The Court’s majority opinion viewed the law’s penalty as a tax, and thus considers the mandate constitutional according to Congress’s power to levy taxes. It rejected, however, the Obama administration’s central argument that the mandate was allowed under the Constitution’s Commerce Clause (found in Article I, Section 8). The federal government has for decades used the Commerce Clause to expand its regulation of economic activity that crosses state lines.

Opponents of the law had called the individual mandate an overreach of the federal government’s power because it attempts, in effect, to regulate economic inactivity. Negative reactions to Obama’s health care reform had fueled the formation of the Tea Party movement and helped Republicans make large gains in the 2010 congressional elections.

Image credit: Iryna Petrenko – Fotolia

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10 Comments

  1. Jin says:

    First post! 😀

  2. Kagome Chloe Emma Amy Higurashi says:

    Second post!

  3. Anonymous says:

    third post

  4. La Chi€a says:

    Wtf!!!! That aintt fair man!!!★★

    • Tavares says:

      If you pay the fine by check, and overpay by one cent, they will not take the time and money to send you back the penny, and the tiekct will not show up on your record either.

  5. WTF says:

    who is the author pllzzz

    • Tony says:

      So Delvin, what are your qualifications for chief? In your letetr to the editor, you make the claim that you’re family is chief by hereditary, is that right?So you should be a leader because your ancestors were leaders? Is that right? It’s in your blood to be chief, right?Merit, experience, training, leadership ability none of that matters, only who your daddy is, right?Rubbish. No wonder most civilizations and democracies/republics got rid of monarchies.

  6. Civics Freak! says:

    Sixth Post ^_^

  7. rosio says:

    Who is the author i have homework but a don’t not who is the author so please somebody’s can tought me please

  8. michael says:

    kewll