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Restoring Legal Immigrants' State Health Insurance- The Finch Case, Wendy E. Parmet, Lorianne Sainsbury-Wong
Restoring Legal Immigrants' State Health Insurance- The Finch Case, Wendy E. Parmet, Lorianne Sainsbury-Wong
Wendy E. Parmet
In Finch v. Commonwealth Insurance Connector Authority, 461 Mass. 232 (2012), the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that a 2009 law barring a class of legal immigrants from a state funded health insurance program for low income adults violated the state Constitution. This article presents our perspective as plaintiff’s counsel. We focus on the pragmatic issues that we confronted as we considered whether or not to pursue litigation, and the forum and claims to pursue.
Commonwealth Of Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Brief And Record Appendix For The Plaintiff On Reserve And Report From The Single Justice, Finch, Et Al. V. Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority, Et Al., No. Sjc-10748 (Filed September 2010), Wendy E. Parmet, Lorianne Sainsbury-Wong, Lauren Guth Barnes
Commonwealth Of Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Brief And Record Appendix For The Plaintiff On Reserve And Report From The Single Justice, Finch, Et Al. V. Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority, Et Al., No. Sjc-10748 (Filed September 2010), Wendy E. Parmet, Lorianne Sainsbury-Wong, Lauren Guth Barnes
Wendy E. Parmet
In 2009 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts enacted a law, St. 2009, c. 65, § 31(a), that excluded approximately 44,000 legal immigrants from Commonwealth Care, a key component of the state’s 2006 health reform act which provides health insurance subsidies for uninsured residents whose income are up to 300 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. In 2010 Health Law Advocates, a public interest law firm, filed a class action before a Single Justice of the State Supreme Judicial Court challenging the exclusion as violating the equal protection provisions of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights. The Single Justice referred four questions to …
Brief Of Health Care For All, Inc., Health Law Advocates, Inc., The Massachusetts Hospital Association, Inc., The Massachusetts League Of Community Health Centers, Inc., Greater Boston Interfaith Organization, Inc., And Community Catalyst, Inc. As Amici Curiae In Support Of Petitioners Urging Reversal On The Minimum Coverage Provision Issue, Department Of Health And Human Services, Et Al. V. State Of Florida, Et Al., No. 11-398 (Filed Jan. 13, 2012), Wendy E. Parmet, Lorianne Sainsbury-Wong, Kevin Outterson
Brief Of Health Care For All, Inc., Health Law Advocates, Inc., The Massachusetts Hospital Association, Inc., The Massachusetts League Of Community Health Centers, Inc., Greater Boston Interfaith Organization, Inc., And Community Catalyst, Inc. As Amici Curiae In Support Of Petitioners Urging Reversal On The Minimum Coverage Provision Issue, Department Of Health And Human Services, Et Al. V. State Of Florida, Et Al., No. 11-398 (Filed Jan. 13, 2012), Wendy E. Parmet, Lorianne Sainsbury-Wong, Kevin Outterson
Wendy E. Parmet
This amicus brief was filed before the Supreme Court in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) litigation on behalf of Health Care for All and other Massachusetts organizations that have been involved in the implementation of Massachusetts’ health 2006 health reform legislation. The brief argues that Massachusetts’ health reform law, upon which the ACA is modeled, has been very effective in expanding insurance coverage within the State, but it required substantial federal support, through a Medicaid waiver, to achieve its success. In addition the Commonwealth’s experience illustrates that the health insurance and health care markets are inherently interstate commerce and that …