Supreme Court Best to Quickly Resolve Obamacare Cases, Plaintiffs Argue in Monday Filing
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Christine Hall, 202-331-2258
Supreme Court Best to Quickly Resolve Obamacare Cases, Plaintiffs Argue in Monday Filing
WASHINGTON, August 18 – Plaintiffs in a major Obamacare lawsuit filed their opposition today to the federal government’s request for en banc reconsideration in Halbig v. Burwell. They argue the U.S. Supreme Court is the only court that can quickly resolve the insurance exchange issue, over which two circuit courts split last month.
Today’s filing opposes the government’s request that the full D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals review the Halbig ruling by a three-judge panel on July 22, 2014. In a 2-1 decision, the panel held that the Affordable Care Act does not grant the IRS authority to extend subsidies and impose employer penalties in states that did not set up their own exchanges. The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) is coordinating and funding the two cases in question.
“As today’s opposition makes clear, en banc reconsideration by the full Circuit would only delay a final resolution of this incredibly important issue,” said Sam Kazman, CEI General Counsel. “A speedy and final resolution of this matter can only come from the Supreme Court.”
“Since filing both the Halbig and King v. Burwell cases, we have tried to move them forward as quickly as possible, given the serious consequences for so many individuals, employers and states. It was for that very reason that both the D.C. and Fourth Circuits gave these cases expedited consideration,” Kazman explained. “And for this same reason, we submit the D.C. Circuit should either deny the government’s request for en banc reconsideration or else delay acting on that request until the Supreme Court decides on whether to review the King case, which we have already appealed to that court.”
> View Appellants’ Opposition to Government Petition for En Banc Reconsideration
> View background on Halbig v. Burwell and King v. Burwell at cei.org/obamacare
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CEI is a non-profit, non-partisan public policy group dedicated to the principles of free enterprise and limited government. For more information about CEI, please visit our website, cei.org. Follow CEI on Twitter! Twitter.com/ceidotorg.