Washington, DC – Constitutional Accountability Center’s Senior Counsel Simon Lazarus was in the court for the Fourth Circuit’s oral argument in King v. Sebelius, the latest legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act, heard in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, VA. Mr. Lazarus issued the following reaction to the proceedings:

“The ACA’s challengers had a tough time before the three-judge panel of the Fourth Circuit this morning. The judges showed no sign of questioning Justice Department lawyer Stuart Delery’s contention that the text and structure of the ACA showed Congress’ intent that tax credits and subsidies should be available to all Americans in all states, whether their exchanges are run by the Federal government or the state.

While Judge Thacker remained largely silent, Judges Davis and Gregory asked a series of questions that indicated deep skepticism of the case presented by attorney Michael Carvin, representing the challengers. Judge Davis framed Carvin’s argument in devastating fashion, in paraphrase: “You want us to kick millions of people off health insurance so a few people can save a small amount of money.” The court clearly had serious concerns about the implications of this last-ditch effort to kill the ACA.”

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