Yesterday the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would not hear the case Coons v. Lew, which many people referred to as the Obamacare ‘death panel’ case.
Supreme Court won’t hear case on Obamacare Medicare board
The Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up the latest lawsuit against Obamacare, this time a challenge to a board that critics label a “death panel.”
The case, Coons v. Lew, contested the constitutionality of the Independent Payment Advisory Board, among other complaints against Obamacare. The IPAB is designed to limit spending growth in Medicare, but the challengers say that it will result in limiting care for seniors.
The Supreme Court’s refusal to take the case was expected. Lower courts had ruled for the government, making the suit an unlikely candidate for the justices’ review. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit said the case was not ripe for review because the panel has not yet made any decisions…
Expect this case to return once the IPAB starts rationing care by reducing physician payments, probably in a few years.
Sean Parnell ([email protected]) is a research fellow for health policy at The Heartland Institute.
