Appeals Court set to hear arguments Tuesday in health law challenge

Arguments in the two cases, which are the first two challenges to the Obama administration's health overhaul to advance from the federal to appellate level, mark the beginning in what some say is a race to the Supreme Court.

The New York Times: Battle Over Health Care Law Shifts To Federal Appellate Courts
A five-week flurry of federal appellate hearings on the constitutionality of the Obama health care law kicks off Tuesday in Richmond, Va., beginning the second round of a race to the Supreme Court among a multitude of litigants eager to strike down the president's signature domestic achievement (Sack, 5/8).

CQ HealthBeat: Supporters, Detractors of Health Law Await Tuesday's Court of Appeals Hearing
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit on Tuesday will hear two cases that challenge the constitutionality of the law's requirement that all Americans have health insurance. It's a landmark moment. The cases — one brought by Virginia and the other by Liberty University in Lynchburg — are the first to advance from federal district courts to the appeals level, possibly the last stop before the Supreme Court (Norman, 5/6).

ABC: Obama Health Care Law Challenge Inches Toward Supreme Court
Justice Department lawyers are preparing to defend the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, the Obama administration's most celebrated legislative achievement. The arguments, to begin Tuesday morning, mark the first time a challenge to the health care law has been heard by a federal appeals court. Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal will argue that the law makes health care coverage widely available, protects consumers from insurance industry underwriting practices, and reduces the cost of uncompensated care that was previously borne by those with health insurance (deVogue, 5/9).

The Hill: Administration Taps Top Lawyer For First Health Reform Appeal Hearing
The government's top lawyer will handle the first appeals court arguments on the constitutionality of the health care reform law - a sign of how seriously the administration takes lower court proceedings in a case with huge ramifications not only for the health care system, but for the 2012 election. Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal will defend the law's individual mandate on Tuesday when Richmond's Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals takes up two challenges to the law. Court watchers say it's highly unusual for the government's highest ranking lawyer to be arguing a case before it reaches the Supreme Court (Pecquet, 5/8).