6 states join multi-state legal challenge against health law

The new tally in the lawsuit, led by the state of Florida, is 26.

Politico: 6 States Join Suit Against Health Reform
Six states are asking to join the most high-profile legal challenge to the health care reform law, bringing the tally up to 26 states (Haberkorn, 1/18).

The Associated Press: 26 States To Be Part Of Obama Health Care Lawsuit
Six more states said Tuesday they would join a lawsuit in Florida against President Obama's health care overhaul, meaning more than half of the country will challenge the law. Joining the coalition in the Florida case were: Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Ohio, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The other states that are suing are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Washington (1/18).

Modern Healthcare: Six States Seek To Join Fla. Challenge To Reform Law
Six more states have asked to join the most expansive of the various legal challenges to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which would give the law's critics the ability to say a majority of states opposed the law, if the judge grants the request. The six new states — Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Ohio, Wisconsin and Wyoming — are seeking to join the 20 states that have already filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Pensacola, Fla., seeking to declare the reform law unconstitutional (Carlson, 1/18).

Des Moines Register: Iowa Joins Lawsuit Against Health Care Law
Iowa has joined 25 other states in a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the health care reform law enacted last year by Congress, Gov. Terry Branstad said Tuesday. "I am signing on to this suit as the governor on behalf of the people of Iowa, because I believe Iowa taxpayers deserve to be heard on this critical matter," Branstad said (Petroski, 1/19).

The Miami Herald: More States Join Florida Lawsuit Against Healthcare Law
The political sea change marked by the November elections on Tuesday pulled six more states into Florida's lawsuit challenging the national health care legislation — making it one of the biggest tests of federal authority in the country's history, with 26 states now in line. On the same day the U.S. House of Representatives began debating repeal of the law, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi filed a motion in Pensacola federal court adding Iowa, Ohio, Kansas, Wyoming, Wisconsin and Maine to the list of plaintiffs (Zink, 1/18).