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White House spokesman Josh Earnest taunted congressional Republicans Thursday in spite of a major court ruling against Obamacare, saying “they’ve been losing this fight for six years.” The Hill reports: In a major ruling, Judge Rosemary Collyer, an appointee of President George W. Bush, said the administration does not have the power to spend money on “cost sharing reduction payments” to insurers without an appropriation from Congress. Collyer’s decision doesn’t immediately go into effect, however, so that the administration can appeal it. A reporter asked Earnest at the outset of the briefing how “problematic” this was for the law overall....

A federal judge delivered a blow to the Obama administration and the president’s signature health care law Thursday in a lawsuit mounted by the House of Representatives. But the lawsuit’s future could be impacted further by November’s elections. U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer sided with the House in a case challenging how the Obama administration has been funding payments to insurers through Obamacare’s cost-sharing subsidies. Collyer, appointed by President George W. Bush, is allowing the program to continue, pending an appeal from the Department of Justice.

What’s the easiest way to avoid getting sued by the Obama Administration? Well… If you come up with an answer, let the rest of us know. A company that has supported the President and his Affordable Care Act, is currently being sued by Obama for following the law. (Wait… “Affordable” Care Act? Can we sue Democrats for false advertising yet?)Welcome to Obama’s America. Where you can literally get sued for trying to comply with the law. (Boy… That’ll teach you.)Honeywell International Inc., and two smaller firms, are being sued for taking advantage of a specific provision in the ACA that...

The top lawyer arguing a case to overturn Obamacare subsidies believes he can succeed at crippling the law even if it's upheld in every district and appellate court. A three-judge panel on the D.C. Circuit invalidated the federal exchange subsidies in June. The full court subsequently vacated the ruling and announced it'll re-hear the case, called Halbig v. Burwell. The conservative opponents have a tough battle because the en banc ruling will feature 8 Democratic-appointed judges — four of whom were appointed by President Obama himself — and 5 Republican-appointed judges. Michael Carvin, the lawyer for the plaintiffs, has appealed...

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has agreed to revisit a ruling that struck down the ObamaCare subsidies issued through the federal exchange. The announcement of the second hearing is a victory for the Obama administration, which suffered a defeat in late July when a three-judge panel threw out the subsidies, ruling they were not legitimate under the Affordable Care Act. A decision by the full D.C. appellate court, in which Democratic appointees outnumber Republicans, could favor the administration. Arguments are scheduled for Dec. 17.

The Arizona Court of Appeals has revived a lawsuit challenging Gov. Jan Brewer's expansion of the state's Medicaid insurance plan for the poor. The court ruled Tuesday that lawmakers have the right to sue over a hospital assessment that funds the expansion.

Lawrence Basich is on the hook for $400,000 in medical bills that would have been paid by his insurer had his application been processed correctly by Nevada’s Obamacare exchange. In a closely-watched class-action lawsuit now gathering steam, Mr. Basich is one of two named plaintiffs in the suit against the state-run exchange — and the company that built it — that claims thousands of residents paid for health insurance, but never got covered because of technical glitches on the portal. The suit may be the first since the Obamacare rollout that pits actual consumers against both the state and its...

The Nevada Division of Insurance must turn over records regarding Obamacare navigators’ criminal histories, Carson City district judge James E. Wilson Jr. ordered yesterday. Unless the division manages to get a stay, it is required to release the public records next week. Joined by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, National Review filed the lawsuit in January after the Division of Insurance refused to turn over any responsive records — that is, records relevant to our inquiry — whatsoever, stonewalling the two publications for weeks. NR filed a records request in Nevada after discovering eleven name-matches between Nevada Obamacare navigators and criminal...

In order to contain the costs of providing health care services to higher risk consumers, insurance companies have been forced to exclude certain health care providers from the Obamacare exchanges. In particular, "pricey" academic hospitals are left out of the new health care program and some are retaliating.  Seattle Children's Hospital has filed a lawsuit against the insurance commissioner in Washington state for being excluded from the exchanges.  “It is unprecedented in our market to have major insurance plans exclude Seattle Children’s,” said Sandy Melzer, senior vice president.In New Hampshire, Frisbie Memorial Hospital "took legal action against an insurer that...

Last week, I discussed the importance of generating additional legal challenges to the IRS’s attempt to tax, borrow, and spend $700 billion, under the rubric of ObamaCare, yet contrary to the clear language of the statute and Congress’ intent. Four lawsuits have already been filed to challenge those illegal taxes and spending. The plaintiffs include two attorneys general, more than a dozen school districts, three private employers and eight individual taxpayers. A ruling for any of these plaintiffs would make the problems with ObamaCare’s decrepit HealthCare.gov web site look like a hiccup. Last week, there was activity in one of...

A lawsuit challenging premium subsidies in federal exchanges survived a procedural hurdle Tuesday, with U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman rejecting the federal government’s motion to dismiss and promising a ruling by February 15th. The case, Halbig v. Sebelius, is one of four outstanding lawsuits challenging an IRS rule allowing premium subsidies in states refusing to create an exchange. If successful, the challenge would not only stop the employer mandate in most states, but would protect some Americans from the individual mandate to buy federally-approved health insurance. Because exchange subsidies are estimated to cost $1.075 trillion through 2023, blocking them...

An “Inside the Beltway” group of public-interest attorneys stated this week that they are exploring a legal challenge to President Barack Obama’s rewriting of Obamacare, a/k/a the Affordable Care Act. According to Judicial Watch, President Obama has unilaterally rewritten the law — without congressional approval — to delay the so-called “employer mandate,” which was scheduled to go in effect on Jan. 1, 2014, for at least a year. The employer mandate stipulates that companies with over 50 full-time employees must provide healthcare plans for their workers that comply with Obamacare standards. If they do not, they will be forced to...