U.S. District Judge strikes down healthcare reform law

(BOISE) – Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter and Attorney General Lawrence Wasden welcomed today’s ruling by U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson, striking down the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” as an unconstitutional overstepping of congressional authority.

Specifically, Judge Vinson found that the “individual mandate” portion of the law – requiring all Americans to purchase health insurance by 2014 or face financial penalties – violated the U.S. Constitution.

“Because the individual mandate is unconstitutional and not severable, the entire Act must be declared void,” Judge Vinson wrote in his 78-page decision in favor of Idaho and 25 other states that challenged President Obama’s signature law.

“There no doubt will be an appeal, but I’m confident we will prevail. In my view, this ruling sets the stage for Congress and the states to get down to the real work of making health care more accessible and affordable rather than shoving a one-size-fits-all solution down Americans’ throats,” Governor Otter said. “Along with the recent decision by another federal judge in Virginia who reached the same conclusion, and the U.S. House of Representatives’ decision to repeal Obamacare, the handwriting seems to be on the wall for proponents of this slippery slope to

“Today’s decision is an important first step in understanding the limits of our Constitution with regard to the powers of Congress,” Attorney General Wasden said. “As important as today’s decision is, there is little doubt that the federal government will appeal. I remain confident that the issues will ultimately be decided by the United States Supreme Court.”