The Obama administration Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to settle the constitutional question over the 2010 health-care law this term, meaning the decision will likely come next summer in the thick of the presidential campaign.
The Justice Department asked the justices to review the decision of the US. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta, which is the only appeals court to say Congress exceeded its power in passing the law. The law requires almost every American to have health insurance.
“Throughout history, there have been similar challenges to other landmark legislation such as the Social Security Act, the Civil Rights Act, and the Voting Rights Act, and all of those challenges failed,” the Justice Department said in a statement. “We believe the challenges to Affordable Care Act -- like the one in the 11th Circuit -- will also ultimately fail and that the Supreme Court will uphold the law.”
The suit is brought by 26 states and the National Federation of Independent Businesses. Those two groups have also asked the justices to accept the case, because while the appeals court panel struck down the individual mandate for health insurance, it upheld other parts of the law.