Flawed on abortion funding

Bishops urge Congress to fix health law flaws after high court decision

A woman opposed to the administration's health care reform law speaks shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court decision.

This Catholic News Service story discusses the ramifications of a court decision on the U.S.'s Patient Protection Act, with particular reference to the moral issues for Catholics.

The U.S. Supreme Court's June 28 decision upholding the health reform law makes it even more urgent for Congress to act to fix the law's "fundamental flaws" on abortion funding, conscience protection, and immigrants' access to health care, the U.S. bishops said. The court found that although the individual mandate in the 2010 health reform law does not pass constitutional muster under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution, it can be upheld as an acceptable exercise of Congress's taxing powers.

In a 65-page opinion announced by Chief Justice John Roberts, five members of the court upheld the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in full but limited the federal government's right to withhold its share of Medicaid funding from states that do not expand the health program for the low-income and disabled as mandated by the law.

Sister Carol Keehan, president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association, said she was pleased that the health-care law "has been found constitutional and will remain in effect." The Daughter of Charity noted that CHA had submitted friend-of-the-court briefs urging the court to find in favour of the individual mandate and the Medicaid expansion.

For full story see The B.C. Catholic website.