Opponents of the U.S. health care law scored a victory for their cause in mid-December when a Virginia-based federal judge became the first to invalidate a section of the legislation.
Judge Henry E. Hudson ruled the condition in the law that requires most Americans to acquire their own health insurance was unconstitutional, stating that the bill oversteps the bounds of the Commerce Clause, which allows Congress limited regulatory authority.
Mayor Craig Lowe said he was not surprised that the ruling posed concerns about the law.
With any groundbreaking piece of legislation, changes, Lowe said, are to be expected.
“As you enter new ground, you’re going to find ways that a particular program can be improved for the benefit of the country, and I think this is certainly an example of that,” Lowe said.
Fletcher Baldwin Jr., director of the Center for International Financial Crimes Studies and professor of law emeritus at UF’s Levin College of Law, said the law’s fate will ultimately be a matter for the Supreme Court to decide.
Baldwin said he expects a 5-4 Supreme Court decision that will declare the insurance mandate unconstitutional. He said he doubts the court will declare the entire health care law unconstitutional, as that would throw out many previous cases decided based on the Commerce Clause.
Even if the insurance mandate is stricken, Baldwin believes much of the law should still be considered constitutional and therefore will remain intact.
Ryan Garcia, second vice chairman of UF College Republicans, hopes the Supreme Court will rule the entire law unconstitutional, although he doesn’t expect a decision anytime soon.
For now, Garcia said he expects both sides in the health care battle to “dig in their heels” until the Supreme Court reviews the law.
“It’s going to be a hard-line battle until the Supreme Court makes a decision,” he said.
Derek Reiners, a visiting assistant professor of political science at UF, doesn’t expect a repeal to work because Republicans lack the needed number of representatives in the Senate, but he views it as a beginning to the negotiation process over the law.
“I think the future of health care in the country isn’t something that’s resolved in a single vote or a single ruling,” he said.
While the City of Gainesville won’t be affected by the health care law’s enactment in terms of the services it provides to citizens, Lowe said the law could help alleviate financial strains on taxpayers as a result of health insurance issues.
“We’re already paying for health care for others now — it’s just more expensive to do it [than it might be with health care reform],” he said.
