Executive Summary: A group of 26 states has filed a response brief with the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that Congress exceeded its authority under the Commerce Clause when it enacted the individual mandate provision of the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

In United States Department of Health and Human Services v. State of Florida, No. 11-398, the federal government challenged a decision by the Eleventh Circuit holding that Congress exceeded its Commerce Clause powers by enacting the individual mandate. The individual mandate requires that, beginning in 2014, everyone (with certain limited exceptions) must purchase federally-approved health insurance or pay a monetary penalty. The Eleventh Circuit also held that the individual mandate is severable from the remainder of the Act, thus the court did not invalidate the entire Act.

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