The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld President Barack Obama's health care reform law in a 5-4 ruling, sending the president into the November election with a major victory under his belt.
The heart of the issue surrounds the individual mandate clause, which required Americans to buy health care coverage or face penalties.
The justices ruled that mandate fell within Congress' power to collect taxes, and is therefore constitutional.
Justices John Roberts, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan wrote the majority opinion.
The decision in Florida v. Department of Health and Human Services comes as something of a surprise after the generally hostile reception the law received during the six hours of oral arguments held over three days in March. But by siding with the court's four Democratic appointees, Chief Justice Roberts avoided the delegitimizing taint of politics that surrounds a party-line vote while passing Obamacare's fate back to the elected branches. GOP candidates and incumbents will surely spend the rest of the 2012 campaign season running against the Supreme Court and for repeal of the law.
Since health care reform has long been a dividing issue among the population, we're curious what locals on the East End think about the ruling. Let us know in the comments and answer our poll.
