Judge Roger Vinson of Florida ruled health reform law is unconstitutional.

 On January 31st 2011, U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson of Florida ruled that the health reform law is unconstitutional. "This has been a difficult decision to reach," he wrote, "and I am aware that it will have indeterminable implications. At a time when there is virtually unanimous agreement that health care reform is needed in this country, it is hard to invalidate and strike down a statute titled ‘The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.'"

But, he wrote, "This case is not about whether the Act is wise or unwise legislation. It is about the Constitutional role of the federal government." He said there are other ways to address the problems, and "if Congress can penalize a passive individual for failing to engage in commerce," as the individual mandate provision does, "the enumeration of powers in the Constitution would have been in vain." And since that provision cannot be separated from the law's other provisions, the entire law "must be declared void."

So now the score is 2-2: Two federal judges (in Michigan and Virginia) have said the law is constitutional. And two others (in Florida and another part of Virginia) have said it is not. The U.S. Court of Appeals in Cincinnati is already receiving briefs in the Michigan case (on January 14, the administration filed this brief), and arguments in the two Virginia cases are scheduled to be heard in Richmond in May.

Judge Vinson stopped short of enjoining, or suspending, the law. But he did say there was a longstanding presumption that government officials will not attempt to enforce a law that the court has found unconstitutional.

The Obama administration has said it will appeal and, in the meantime, will continue implementing the law. The appeals process for all these cases could take as long as two years. There is little doubt the issue eventually will end up in the Supreme Court. In fact on Wednesday, Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., introduced a resolution in the Senate asking the Supreme Court to act quickly to settle the Constitutional challenges instead of waiting for the completion of the appeals process. On Thursday, the attorney general of Virgina said he also will ask the Supreme Court to expedite the case. The Court has a high bar for reviewing cases early, requiring "a showing that the case is of such imperative public importance as to justify deviation from normal appellate practice and to require immediate determination in the Court," according to its rules.

The Florida case is the most prominent of the challenges to the reform law. Twenty-six states and the industry group representing small businesses (the National Federation of Independent Business) are all part of the suit.

As a result of Vinson's decision, Florida's new Republican governor, Rick Scott, told reporters from the St. Petersburg Times, "We are not going to spend a lot of time and money with regard to trying to get ready to implement" the reform law. Meanwhile, Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty told the Department of Health and Human Services that the state no longer wanted a $1 million grant that they had applied for last year.

Other states were reacting more cautiously. The Republican governor of Georgia, Nathan Deal, said, "We'll be required to move forward until such time relief is granted or an appellate decision is finalized. It's a victory, but not a complete victory."

The governor of Vermont, a Democrat, said his state was "moving ahead at full speed" to carry out the law.