Cuccinelli will push for Supreme Court hearing of health-care appeal

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli said Thursday that Virginia will file a petition to ask the United States Supreme Court to take Virginia’s health care lawsuit without first waiting for review by a federal court of appeals.

“Given the uncertainty caused by the divergent rulings of the various district courts on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, we feel that it is necessary to seek resolution of this issue as quickly as possible. Currently, state governments and private businesses are being forced to expend enormous amounts of resources to prepare to implement a law that, in the end, may be declared unconstitutional. Regardless of whether you believe the law is constitutional or not, we should all agree that a prompt resolution of this issue is in everyone’s best interest,” Cuccinelli said in a statement.

The move by Cuccinelli has the backing of Gov. Bob McDonnell, who issued this statement on the matter today.

“Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is taking the proper and necessary step in seeking an expedited review of the Virginia health care lawsuit. Immediately following Judge Henry Hudson’s December decision that the individual mandate component of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional, I contacted my fellow governors to seek their support for this course of action. Regardless of where one stands on the issue of the federal health care law, it is imperative that the constitutionality of the matter be settled expeditiously. States, businesses and individuals are already incurring expenses of time and money as they seek to understand and prepare for the implementation of this unprecedented law in 2014. That preparation is taking place at the same time that recent court decisions in both Virginia and Florida are calling into question whether or not this law can withstand judicial review. It is a confusing situation, and there must be clarity and finality on such an important national issue. That finality will only be achieved through a ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States. All other court decisions and reviews prior to that moment will serve simply to exacerbate the uncertainty and continue the delay.

“I thank the Attorney General for moving forward with this action. The Virginia health care case must be heard by the Supreme Court of the United States at the earliest date possible.”

Story by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at [email protected].