Likely Chairman Of House Judiciary Committee To Probe Justice Department's Decision Not To Defend Health Law

The Justice Department's decision earlier in the year not to defend the ACA against a suit challenging the law's constitutionality prompted three Justice Department career attorneys to withdraw from the case. Now Rep Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) says the House Judiciary Committee will investigate the department's refusal to defend a federal statute.

Reuters: House Democrats Target DOJ Decision Not To Defend Obamacare

Democrats will scrutinize the Trump administration's decision not to defend Obamacare in federal court, when Democrats take control of the U.S. House of Representatives next year, a leading Democrat said on Monday. In June, the Department of Justice declared the healthcare law's individual mandate unconstitutional in federal court, which threatened to undermine insurance protections for people with preexisting conditions, and helped make healthcare a winning issue for Democrats in House elections on Nov. 6. (11/19)

Elsewhere on Capitol Hill —

CQ: Democrats Weigh Path Forward On 'Medicare-For-All'

Progressives in the House are calling for a vote on a single-payer “Medicare-for-all” bill in the next Congress, but the expected chairmen who will set the agenda for next year say they have other health priorities. Still, the progressives’ push could earn more attention over the next two years as Democratic candidates begin vying to take on President Donald Trump in 2020. A handful of potential presidential candidates expected to declare interest have already co-sponsored “Medicare-for-all” legislation, an issue that was also a flashpoint in Democratic primaries over the past year. (McIntire, 11/19)

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