USA TODAY: USSC upholds ACA, 5-4, with Roberts rather than Kennedy joining Ginsburg et al

USA Today just posted an article that fleshes out details of the ACA decision summarized by legal bloggers at http://www.scotusblog.com/cover-it-live/

Chief Justice Roberts joined Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, and Sotomayor in upholding the insurance mandate 5-4 as a tax. Justice Ginsburg’s concurring opinion would go further and also uphold the mandate under the Commerce Clause.

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?

From http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2012/06/Supreme-Court-rules-on-Obama-health-care-plan-718037/1

“Supreme Court upholds Obama health care law
By David Jackson, USA TODAY Jun 28, 2012

The Supreme Court upheld President Obama's health care law today in a splintered, complex opinion that gives Obama a major election-year victory. Basically. the justices said that the individual mandate -- the requirement that most Americans buy health insurance or pay a fine -- is constitutional as a tax.

Chief Justice John Roberts -- a conservative appointed by President George W. Bush -- provided the key vote to preserve the landmark health care law, which figures to be a major issue in Obama's re-election bid against Republican opponent Mitt Romney. The government had argued that Congress had the authority to pass the individual mandate as part of its power to regulate interstate commerce; the court disagreed with that analysis, but preserved the mandate because the fine amounts to a tax that is within Congress' constitutional taxing powers.

The announcement will have a major impact on the nation's health care system, the actions of both federal and state governments, and the course of the November presidential and congressional elections.”