Administration Violated Constitution in Funding Obamacare Subsidies

Judge Rosemary Collyer of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued an opinion today declaring that the Obama administration violated the Constitution by funding Obamacare subsidies for which Congress did not appropriate funds.

“Congress passes all federal laws in this country,” the judge wrote in her opinion in the case of U.S. House of Representatives v. Burwell.

“The Court will enter judgment in favor of the House of Representatives and enjoin the use of unappropriated monies to fund reimbursements due to insurers under Section 1402,” the judge said.

The opinion discussed the distinction between Section 1401 of the Affordable Care Act and Section 1402. Section 1401 provided for refundable tax credits to help cover the premiums of people who purchase health insurance on the Obamacare exchanges and who have adjusted gross incomes between 100 percent and 400 percent of the poverty level. Section 1402 provides reimbursements to insurers for lowering the “cost sharing”—i.e. deductibles, co-pays—for people who qualify under the law for such subsidies.

However, as written the Obamacare law incorporated the Section 1401 tax credits into the Internal Revenue Code, which includes language permanently funding such credits.

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