Judge sides with GOP against health-care law

WASHINGTON -- In a setback for the Obama health-care law, a federal judge ruled Thursday the administration is subsidizing medical bills unconstitutionally for millions of people while ignoring congressional power over government spending.

The ruling from U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer was a win for House Republicans who brought the politically charged legal challenge in an effort to undermine the law.

If the decision is upheld, it could roil the health-care law's insurance markets, which still are struggling for stability after three years.

Collyer said her ruling would be put on hold while it is appealed. The White House expressed confidence it would be overturned.

At issue is the $175 billion the government is paying to reimburse health insurers over a decade to reduce deductibles and co-payments for lower-income people.

The House argues Congress never specifically appropriated that money and has denied an administration request for it.

Collyer agreed the administration is exceeding its constitutional authority by spending the money anyway. She rejected the administration's argument the law authorizes the money automatically because the program is considered an "entitlement" like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

House Republicans launched the lawsuit in 2014 over Democrats' objections.

The GOP-led House already had voted dozens of times to repeal all or parts of "Obamacare," but those efforts went nowhere, failing to overcome opposition from Senate Democrats and the president.

So the House turned its focus to tying up money spent on the law.

Republican House leaders asserted the Obama administration couldn't spend money lawmakers refused to provide.

House Speaker Paul Ryan called the decision "an historic win for the Constitution and the American people."

"The court ruled that the administration overreached by spending taxpayer money without approval from the people's representatives," he said in a statement.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said House Republicans ultimately would lose the case.

"This suit represents the first time in our nation's history that Congress has been permitted to sue the executive branch over a disagreement about how to interpret a statute," Earnest said.

"It's unfortunate that Republicans have resorted to a taxpayer-funded lawsuit to refight a political fight that they keep losing," Earnest added. "They have been losing this fight for six years. And they'll lose it again."

The administration is expected to appeal Thursday's ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, where a majority of active judges have been appointed by Democrats.

Collyer was appointed to the district court by President George W. Bush, a Republican.

About 12.7 million people are covered through insurance markets created by President Barack Obama's law. The disputed subsidies help lower-earning customers afford out-of-pocket costs, such as annual insurance deductibles and co-payments, when they seek medical care.

These subsidies, called "cost-sharing reductions," are separate from the financial aid provided under the law to help people pay their monthly premiums, which would not be affected.