Court dumps Obamacare lawsuit brought by doctors

A federal appeals court in Chicago tosses a lawsuit challenging the administration's delay of the health law's employer mandate -- a case similar to the one that House Republicans plan to file. Meanwhile, advocates for the drug, device and biotechnology industries raise concerns about the public database set to go live next week, showing how much doctors get from those groups.

Politico: Court Tosses Obamacare Mandate Lawsuit Brought By Doctors
A federal appeals court has summarily tossed a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration's delay of Obamacare's employer mandate -; a case that is similar to the one that House Republicans plan to file against the president. This suit was filed by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, which argued that the delay could hurt doctors financially. But the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago on Friday said the plaintiffs don't have a right to sue (Haberkorn, 9/22).

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Judge Dumps Challenge To IRS Role In Obamacare Penalties
Like U.S. District Judge William Griesbach, the 7th Circuit found that McQueeney and the physicians' group lacked standing to bring the challenge, noting the Supreme Court's repeated rejection of attempts by one person to litigate over someone else's taxes (Vielmetti, 9/22).

The Hill: Court Nixes Obamacare Mandate Delay Lawsuit
A federal appeals court threw out a lawsuit over the delay of ObamaCare's employer mandate, a sign that a similar challenge in the works by House Republicans might not fare well. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals said the plaintiffs did not have standing to sue, and only parties "seeking to advance the interests" of the mandate could mount a "plausible" case against its delay. The case was filed by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, which argued the administration did not have the authority to defer the requirement that most employers offer health insurance (Viebeck, 9/22).

The Hill: Drug, Device CEOs Voice Concerns About Obamacare Project
Advocates for the drug, device and biotechnology industries are raising concerns about the implementation of a payments database required by ObamaCare. The "Sunshine Act" system will allow the public to search how much money doctors receive from drug and device companies. It is scheduled to launch on Sept. 30, despite complaints about inaccuracies and technical glitches. But the CEOs of PhRMA, AdvaMed and the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) say the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has not been clear enough about what data will be posted on the site and how it will be presented (Viebeck, 9/22).

The Associated Press: Spin Meter: Those Changing Health Law Numbers
The Obama administration has had to revise and refine some initial enrollment numbers for health insurance sign-ups after they turned out to be too optimistic. At other times, metrics less favorable to the president's overhaul leaked out after officials claimed not to have such data. Parsing the numbers is a new pursuit for administration officials from President Barack Obama on down, to lawmakers of both parties and a gaggle of outside analysts (9/22).