Senior Justice Department attorney quits after Sessions rescinds defense of Obamacare [View all]

[DonViejo]

Source: Axios



Khorri Atkinson 9 hours ago

A senior attorney at the Justice Department has resigned in response to the agency's decision last week not to defend the Affordable Care Act in court because it believes the individual mandate provision is unconstitutional, the Washington Post reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The details: Joel McElvain, who reportedly has been working at the Justice Department for more than 20 years, tendered his resignation on Friday — the day Attorney General Jeff Sessions informed congressional lawmakers about his decision on Obamacare. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the provision in 2012, and the Trump administration's move has roll back years of legal work McElvain carried out on this issue. The individual mandate requires most people to buy insurance or pay a tax penalty.

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Read more: https://www.axios.com/senior-attorney-quits-after-admin-stops-defending-key-obamacare-provisions--1bb1bbb1-c40b-43aa-be9a-eee64915281a.html?utm_source=sidebar

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Sam Baker 3 hours ago

Republicans aren't loving the latest ACA lawsuit

The Trump administration's latest effort to eliminate the Affordable Care Act's protections for pre-existing conditions is opening a rift among Republicans, and even within the executive branch.

Between the lines: Congressional Republicans seem to just now be waking up to the fact that the Trump administration has boxed them into a new round of questions about whether the party wants to guarantee coverage for pre-existing conditions.

Not messing around: "The Justice Department argument in the Texas case is as far-fetched as any I’ve ever heard. Congress specifically repealed the individual mandate penalty, but I didn’t hear a single senator say that they also thought they were repealing protections for people with pre-existing conditions," Sen. Lamar Alexander said in a statement.

Azar punts: HHS Secretary Alex Azar tried to duck the issue yesterday as he testified before the Senate HELP Committee, which Alexander chairs.

more
https://www.axios.com/republicans-dont-love-aca-lawsuit-01d9080e-4f52-48b6-903e-c3ab995afa73.html