Obama healthcare faces legal setback

As part of his election campaign "Change" slogan, US President Barack Obama had promised healthcare reforms that would provide coverage to citizens who currently lack it

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/155379.html


US President Barack Obama's healthcare reforms have hit a stumbling block as a federal court ruled that a key part of the new bill is unconstitutional.

Judge Henry Hudson of the US state of Virginia said on Monday that a mandate in the reform law which forces all Americans to buy insurance or face financial penalty goes beyond federal authority.

In his ruling he added that the law "exceeds the constitutional boundaries of congressional power."

The controversial "individual mandate" provision is a central component of Obama's healthcare bill.

The law which would take effect in 2014 would make it economically feasible for insurers to comply with consumer protections in the legislation.

The Virginia verdict marked the first time the US government has lost a challenge to the healthcare bill since its passage by the Democratic-controlled Congress last year.

Just hours after the Virginia ruling, incoming Republican House Speaker John Boehner quickly cautioned other states against implementing the new law, since "its central mandate has been ruled unconstitutional."

Several US states have already pledged to fight the law.

Most experts say the fate of the $940-billion reform scheme will likely be eventually determined by the US Supreme Court.

As part of his election campaign "Change" slogan, President Obama had promised healthcare reforms that would provide coverage to citizens who currently lack it.

The issue topped his administration's agenda until the bill was finally signed into law in March.

However, Republicans, who just took control of the House of Representatives last month after the US midterm elections, have pledged to derail the new law by cutting off funding for it.

Some of the lawmakers are even set to repeal the healthcare overhaul.

Experts now predict a gridlock in Congress for the next two years in implementing healthcare reform's provisions.