Hearing Set for Monday in Virginia Case

10/15/10

A Summary Judgment hearing is scheduled for Monday at 9 a.m. in Commonwealth of Viriginia v. Sebelius.  This is the first of any of the health care lawsuits to reach this stage.

The Plaintiff has already survived a Motion to Dismiss (heard on July 1 and denied on August 2).

When Judge Henry Hudson denied the Motion to Dismiss, he summarized the Commonwealth's case this way :

Succinctly put, the Commonwealth defies the Secretary to point to any Commerce Clause jurisprudence extending its tentacles to an individual’s decision not to engage in economic activity.  Furthermore, they argue that since Section 1501 [the individual mandate] exceeds this enumerated power, Congress cannot invoke either the Necessary and Proper Clause or its taxation powers to regulate such passive economic inactivity.  Alternatively, the Commonwealth maintains that Section 1501 is in direct conflict with the Virginia Health Care Freedom Act.  The Commonwealth argues that the enactment of Section 1501 therefore encroaches on the sovereignty of the Commonwealth and offends the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.

In the same Memorandum Opinion, Hudson stated that the Plaintiff had standing, that the case was ripe, and that it “raises a host of complex constitutional issues.” 

Monday the case has its day in court.

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