Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott and a bipartisan multi-state coalition from across the nation – which now includes 20 states – filed an amended complaint on the recently enacted Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“Act”). The amended complaint filed in federal district court reflects the addition of the following seven states to the original 13 state coalition: Indiana, North Dakota, Mississippi, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia and Alaska. In addition to adding new parties to the challenge, the amended complaint raises additional constitutional problems with the new health care law.
The amended complaint augments the challenge that 13 states filed last March, which detailed how the Act infringes upon Americans’ constitutionally protected individual liberties; encroaches upon the states’ constitutionally guaranteed sovereignty; forces states to spend billions of additional dollars on entitlement programs; imposes an unconstitutional tax; and violates the Tenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
The 20-state coalition, which includes Texas, Florida, South Carolina, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Washington, Colorado, Michigan, Utah, Alabama, South Dakota, Idaho, Indiana, North Dakota, Mississippi, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia and Alaska, filed its amended complaint in the Federal District Court in the Northern District of Florida
Rather than cite the Act’s financial impact on each state, the amended complaint cites data from the State of Florida as a representative of all 20 states.
To read the amended lawsuit, please visit: http://www.oag.state.tx.us/newspubs/releases/2010/051410healthcare_amend_comp.pdf