The office of Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen, one of the states suing to overturn the Affordable Care Act, sends over this statement flatly declaring the law "dead" for his state unless it's revived by a higher court, and asserting that this relieves state government of any and all its responsibiilties to implement the law:
"Judge Vinson declared the health care law void and stated in his decision that a declaratory judgment is the functional equivalent of an injunction. This means that, for Wisconsin, the federal health care law is dead -- unless and until it is revived by an appellate court. Effectively, Wisconsin was relieved of any obligations or duties that were created under terms of the federal health care law. What that means in a practical sense is a discussion I'll have in confidence with Governor Walker, as the State's counsel."It's unclear what this means in practice; a spokesman for the attorney general declined to detail what this might mean for Wisconsin residents. But it seems likely that other state officials hostile to the law may follow suit. My understanding is news organizations are canvassing state governments around the country to see if they're going to threaten to stop implementing the law in the wake of Vinson's decision. So we'll soon get a better sense of how widespread this will be.
I'm betting it will be very widespread right up until a higher court overturns Vinson's decision. Remember the stated goal by Republicans: to throw as many wrenches in the works as possible to see the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act to fail at the state level. Looks like states refusing to implement the law in the wake of Judge Vinson's decision is the excuse they need to trash the law.
The question is, will they give the federal money back, and who will lose their health care now?
This hints at a new line of criticism Dems can use, should other state governments do as Wisconsin is doing. The Affordable Care Act has already resulted in nearly $40 million in federal grant funding to Wisconsin. Now that the law is "dead," will Wisconsin return the money or rebuff any other federal grant money? Will other state governments declaring the law dead do the same? If so, how much money do they stand to lose? How will this impact their consistuents? It's a pretty worthwhile line of inquiry.
Is Wisconsin going to end Medicaid, for example? The next battlefield for Obamacare is taking shape, and this time people's lives are at stake.
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From the Politico:
In a letter sent Tuesday and obtained by POLITICO, Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty informed the Department of Health & Human Services that the state no longer wanted a $1 million grant that they had applied for last year.
“The purpose of this letter is to inform you that after deliberate consideration, I hereby rescind acceptance of the above-referenced $1 million rate review grant, which occurred in a letter to you dated September 15, 2010,” McCarty wrote.
That's one.
Zandar:
I'm betting it will be very widespread right up until a higher court overturns Vinson's decision. Remember the stated goal by Republicans: to throw as many wrenches in the works as possible to see the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act to fail at the state level. Looks like states refusing to implement the law in the wake of Judge Vinson's decision is the excuse they need to trash the law.
That's because the ruling is binding unless it is overturned by a higher court. There was no need for an injunction because it was a declaratory judgment, therefore no stay is allowed; the administration's only option is to file an appeal. If the administration attempts to force states to keep implementing Obamacare, the administration could very well be hit with contempt charges. That would be one of those high crimes and misdemeanors. You know what that means.
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