Today U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson of the Eastern District of Virginia filed an opinion upholding the Affordable Care Act while declaring the “individual-responsibility” provision to be unconstitutional. Here is a statement from Ethan Rome, executive director of Health Care for America Now (HCAN), on the ruling:

“We are pleased that Judge Hudson rejected Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s attempt to strike down the Affordable Care Act and denied the request for an injunction. However, the judge declared that the “individual-responsibility” requirement is unconstitutional. We think that is wrong on the merits and bad for people’s health. If his decision is upheld, it would give the green light for insurance companies to deny people care based on pre-existing conditions. Putting insurance companies back in charge of our health care is the wrong way to go.

“Only when everyone has coverage can we end the industry’s discrimination against nearly 60 million people with pre-existing health conditions while also keeping health costs down.“We are confident that the ACA ultimately will be ruled constitutional, that implementation will continue to move forward at a swift pace and that the law will fulfill its promise of providing quality, affordable coverage and health security to all Americans.”

“Judge Hudson’s ruling is no more important than decisions by 14 other federal district judges of equal rank who have determined that the law is constitutional or have dismissed complaints on procedural grounds, and the ultimate decision will rest with the U.S. Supreme Court.

Download and read HCAN's memo to reporters and editors re: Federal Court Decisions on the Affordable Care Act