Virginia Federal Judge Rules Health Care Reform Provisions Unconstitutional

A federal district judge in Virginia has ruled that a key healthcare reform provision that forces people to buy health insurance is unconstitutional. Judge Henry E. Hudson, whom President George W. Bush appointed, became the first federal judge to strike a blow at the law, which two other federal judges in Virginia and Michigan had upheld. The Court sided with Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli when it ruled that the imposition of an individual mandate to purchase private insurance stepped beyond the bounds of Congress' historic Commerce Clause power. Nor can the mandate be reframed as a tax, as it was not designed to raise revenue, but to penalize behavior. To read Judge Hudson’s ruling on the healthcare law go to http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Sections/NEWS/A_Politics/___Politics_Today_Stories_Teases/PPM187_vahlthrlg.pdf