Chief Justice Roberts RULES!!!
With a vote of 5-4, the Supreme Court of the United States has upheld the Health Care Reform legislation with the exception that the federal government’s power to terminate states’ Medicaid funds is narrowly read. Read the opinion here.
While Justice Anthony Kennedy was thought to be the swing vote, he ultimately dissented and Chief Justice John Roberts’ vote ultimately saved the historic legislation.
Here is a summary:
- Justices Kennedy, Scalia, Alito and Thomas voted that the entire Act was unconstitutional.
- Justices Ginsburg, Kagan, Sotomayor and Breyer voted to uphold the Act as constitutional.
- Chief Justice Roberts forged a middle ground stating that the Act was constitutional under Congress’ power to tax, but unconstitutional under the Commerce Clause. However, the Act is ultimately constitutional because of the former.
Regarding the Medicaid issue, CJ Roberts notes that “[n]othing in our opinion precludes Congress from offering funds under the ACA to…
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Kmareka.com 
This decision is somewhat over my head legally,but I can live with it-I have to live with Roe v.Wade,which is far worse.Now maybe Klaus can understand that Citizens United is the law of the land too,as are Heller and McDonald.And Kehlo-that insane decision regarding eminent domain.
Guess what?No one noticed the Alvarez decision which essentially makes it OK to impersonate a military hero.What a crock that is.People laid down life and limb to help others and received medals for it-it’s really not acceptable for some phony to come along and steal that recognition.
One of my cousins received a very high decoration for valor in Vietnam as a Marine pilot-his dad handcarved the citation on a plaque.My cousin kept it in his closet because of his innate modesty and the fact that it was a very traumatic experience.
Many years later he met one of the people he had saved at a reunion and didn’t know it until the other guy described the event and said it was the only reason he was alive.
I can’t understand the Alvarez decision.
BTW I never considered Roberts a rubberstamp for anyone.
The immigration decision I DID undertsand and was basically in agreement with half of it.Staes can’t require immigration ID to be carried-the Federal government already does and it’s a crime not to over the age of 18.That law(Alien Registration Act of 1940)was upheld 9-0 by SCOTUS.
the VA is a great example of gummint insurance that continually improves and uses evidence to find the best approaches to keeping people healthy and treat illness. Imagine if all Americans could get that quality of care.
Yes,the VA is a very good system-their record keeping is very innovative and it works like this:I can be anywhere in the US and go to the nearest VA facility and they’ll know every drug I take and have a chronological record of every provider contact I’ve had in their system.I have to input any outsider provider contact through my own efforts.Not difficult in my case(eye doctor).
I am not sure how their system would work with the population at large.
They don’t treat children and virtually all the patients speak English(I’d guess even in Puerto Rico because the Army isn’t bilingual friendly).They also “farm out”some difficult cases.
One good thing is they don’t waste money and time because there’s no incentive to do so-no fraud,etc.Little extraneous paperwork.My mom died in February and I’m still getting stuff I barely understand in the mail.
Nancy-the VA idsn’t “insurance”-it’s a mega HMO.
Just when you thought the road to perdition was a greased pole, Roberts comes along and surprises everyone.
Basically, a year ago, no one considered the possibility of it being overturned as anything but a remote possibility. Since then, we’ve gotten an object lesson in judicial activism, and this seemed like another step towards overturning all the social legislation of the 20th century, including Social Security.
Sorry, not familiar with the Alvarez case, but it certainly sounds wrong.
As for Citizens United, yes, it’s the law of the land. But so was slavery for about 80 years, and Separate but Equal, and a prohibition against labor organizing, and Prohibition, for that matter. A law can be a law and still be unjust. Citizens United is the worst decision since Bush v Gore. And the worst part is that the Scalia-Alito-Thomas axis took what was originally a very narrow case and told the plaintiffs to come back with a broader case.
I could stomach it a bit more if donors had to disclose themselves. This is the worst blow to a democratic form of gov’t since more right-wing-judicial activists decided that corporations are persons. How ridiculous is that? That one was never legislated; the SCOTUS pretty much made that one out of thin air.
I heard David Cobb speak at the Pawtucket Public Library. He said that corporations were originally formed for a limited time and purpose. Now they are ‘persons’ that are immortal. If they are persons, how come they don’t die?
Well,if identities of donors were public,I see no harm in that at all.Gotta be honest-I never even heard of the case til it was decided.I think we’re past the possibility of a Plessy vs.Ferguson decision,really.
Joe, good point about the VA. But from doing home care for their patients, and getting care for my father there, I’ve come to admire how well they deliver health care. I hope some of the smart approaches the VA has developed will be used in other systems. We have to reward wellness, not quantity of procedures. Even the for-profit insurance companies are figuring that out. The ACA puts us on the right track– even though it’s small steps so far.
Even when wellness isn’t an option,there seems to be a plethora of outrageously overpriced tests,procedures,and equipment/supplies that could be done for less or not at all with no negative outcome for the patient.My mom’s end of life care (thanks to a living will)was effective,simple,and kind.I vote for hospice over a “damn the torpedoes”approach where a person is kept alive in terrible circumstances.my gather in law passed last night after over a year of misery on “home hospice”because a family member insisted on a feeding tube and other things in place of letting him go peacefully.he had terminal Alzheimer’s-you know the score there,so I’ll spare the details.My wife couldn’t bear what was being done,but it’s over now,thankfully.
BTW some people on the right are calling Roberts a “traitor”-I don’t like that.They were OK with his decisions up to now-he apparently thinks for himself.He reminded us that elections and legislation have consequences that it aren’t necessarily the courts’ place to undo.IOW he eschewed “judicial activism”.
Who couldn’t see the tax angle given that IRS was empowered to enforce the ACA?One would figure HHS,right?I will say that Obama pretty much lied to the country on the tax question.Well,we have an election-people can vote or else they can shut up.
I noticed Ms.Marek doing a PR spot for the Budlong Pool-LOL!!
Have a safe 4th.This IS the holiday to party if you’re so inclined.
I meant my “father in law”.