WASHINGTON DC -Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI) and Health Subcommittee Chairman Pete Stark (D-CA) commented on today's ruling by a Bush Appointee to the Federal District Court in Virginia against the individual mandate in health reform. Fourteen other judges, appointed by Republicans and Democrats, have already ruled against similar lawsuits.
Chairman Levin: “A quality health care system for all Americans is built on the premise that responsibility is shared between employers, the government, and the individual. Fourteen similar cases have been dismissed or decided in favor of the Affordable Care Act, recognizing the importance of a functioning, affordable health care market, and I am confident that after review at the appellate level this case will also be decided in favor of the Affordable Care Act."
Chairman Stark: "Apparently Republicans are now for judicial activism after they were against it. Unfortunately, we already know what happens if this lawsuit succeeds. Millions of Americans will lose their health insurance, premiums will go up for working families, and more people will be forced into bankruptcy when they get sick."
