The following assessment is from the American Benefits Council:
Florida Federal District Court Strikes Down PPACA, Individual Mandate
On January 31, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida (Pensacola Division) handed down a judgment stating that the entirety of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is unconstitutional based on the inseverability of the individual mandate (the requirement that most Americans obtain health insurance). The court declined to halt implementation of the law, pending appeal, so the regulatory process will continue as usual.
In his decision, Judge Roger Vinson explained that “because the individual mandate is unconstitutional and not severable, the entire Act must be declared void.” He also notes that his decision “is based on an application of the Commerce Clause law as it exists pursuant to the Supreme Court’s current interpretation and definition. Only the Supreme Court (or a Constitutional amendment) can expand that.”
This federal court decision is the latest strike against the PPACA on the grounds of the individual mandate. As we have previously reported, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia handed down a similar December 13, 2010, ruling declaring that the law’s individual mandate exceeds the authority granted to Congress under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. Unlike the Florida case, however, the Virginia judge found that the law is severable and therefore did not declare the entire law unconstitutional.
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