Governor: Alaska to fight federal health care law

By JEREMY HSIEH

JUNEAU, Alaska

Gov. Sean Parnell said Tuesday that Alaska will join a multistate lawsuit challenging the federal health care reform act President Barack Obama signed into law last month.

Parnell and state Attorney General Dan Sullivan released a 48-page legal memo on the case, calling the law an unprecedented and unconstitutional exercise of federal power to regulate commerce.

"For the first time, the federal government is dictating economic choices," Parnell said. If that power is upheld, the Republican governor said, it could lead to mandates for gym memberships or the purchase of GM cars.

Alaska and at least 20 other states claim a "mandate" on individuals to buy coverage, which goes into effect in 2014, unconstitutional. They face tax penalties otherwise.

Florida is leading a 19-state lawsuit on these grounds. Virginia is also suing in a separate case.

The White House has said the lawsuits will fail.

Parnell said bringing affordable health insurance to Alaskans is a laudable goal, but "health insurance at the price of freedom? No."

He and Sullivan said Alaska's participation in the case is about limiting the federal government's power, not about the merits of the health care reform law.

Assistant Attorney General John Katchen said there's a "good chance" the case will be resolved at the district court level in the fall, with appeals to follow.

The reaction from Alaska's congressional delegation was mixed.

"At a time when Alaska's unemployment rate is at record highs and families are struggling to make ends meet, the administration of Gov. Sean Parnell has decided to spend countless hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars on a lawsuit of dubious merit which is unlikely to be successful," U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, said in a statement. "That level of state dollars and resources could be better spent keeping our economy healthy, creating jobs for Alaskans and protecting public safety."

Sullivan said the lawsuit will cost Alaska $5,000.

The two Republicans in the state's delegation, Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Rep. Don Young, applauded the move.

"The health care legislation is absolutely unconstitutional and joining in this lawsuit is the right thing to do for Alaskans," Young said in a statement.

Murkowski said she is opposed to the "onerous individual mandate that will require Alaskans to purchase health insurance or otherwise face a stiff penalty -- ultimately 2.5 percent of one's taxable income."