Virginia federal judge rules health reform law unconstitutional

A Virginia federal district judge ruled Monday that a provision of the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional, marking a victory for those who oppose the law.

Since the ACA passed last March, more than 20 different legal challenges have been filed in courts across the nation questioning the constitutionality of the law's requirement that individuals purchase health insurance or face a penalty.

Monday's ruling, issued by Judge Henry Hudson in a Richmond district court, was filed by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli. Cuccinelli is calling for an injunction of the entire law if the judge finds the individual mandate unconstitutional.

"This case is not about healthcare," he said. "This case is about protecting our liberty."

The White House does not agree with the ruling, according to Stephanie Cutter, assistant to the President for special projects.

"In the nine months since the health reform law was passed, we've made tremendous progress to strengthen our healthcare system, including lowering costs and implementing a new patient's bill of rights to end some of the worst insurance company abuses," she wrote in a White House blog, "That work continues. And we're confident that when it's all said and done, the courts will find the Affordable Care Act constitutional."

In a similar case, Norman Moon, a federal judge in Virginia's western district, ruled on Nov. 30 that it is constitutional for Congress to require individuals to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty. Moon said there is "a rational basis for Congress to conclude that individuals' decisions about how and when to pay for healthcare are activities that in the aggregate substantially affect the interstate healthcare market."

Moon said Americans who choose not to purchase health insurance shift the cost of their care to other market participants, driving up the prices of insurance policies.

In October, a Michigan federal judge also ruled the law is constitutional.

"History and the facts are on our side," the White House said. "Similar legal challenges to major new laws – including the Social Security Act, the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act – were all filed and all failed." 

According to Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House and founder of the Center for Health Transformation, the road will be rocky for healthcare reform over the next several years.

"Regulatory oversight is going to be one of the major themes of this Congress," he said at a December 7 press briefing.

Gingrich predicts the new Republican majority in the House will repeal the healthcare reform law by late this spring, potentially repassing aspects of the law that are worth keeping.

Those opposing the law are ultimately pushing for a Supreme Court ruling on its constitutionality.