A federal judge on Wednesday allowed House Republicans to move forward with part of a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration's implementation of the Affordable Care Act, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In a 43-page decision, U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer ruled the House had standing to bring its claims alleging the way the Obama administration is paying for part of the ACA violates the Constitution.
The court ruled that House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) can challenge the spending of "billions of unappropriated dollars" to support the healthcare law. House Republicans have argued that the Obama administration overstepped its powers when it began paying health insurance companies billions of dollars — that were requested but never approved by Congress — for discounts on deductibles they offer to low-income consumers under the ACA.
Although Judge Collyer allowed a portion of the lawsuit to proceed, she did reject the piece in which Mr. Boehner contested the Department of Treasury's decision to waive an ACA provision requiring employers to provide health insurance without first consulting Congress, according to The Hill.
Commenting on the court's ruling, Mr. Boehner said, "I am grateful to the court for ruling that this historic overreach can be challenged by the coequal branch of government with the sole power to create or change the law."
The Obama administration said it plans to immediately appeal the decision.
More articles on healthcare industry lawsuits:
5 recent False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law settlements
Georgia health system inks $35M deal to settle Stark Law, False Claims Act allegations