Substantial Shifts in Supreme Court Health Law Jurisprudence
Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 320, No. 14, 1431.
3 Pages Posted: 4 Oct 2018 Last revised: 5 Dec 2019
Date Written: October 9, 2018
Abstract
President Trump’s nomination of jurist Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court presents significant, potential changes on health law and policy issues. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Kavanaugh’s approaches as a federal appellate court judge and scholar could literally shift the Court’s balance on consequential health policies. Judge Kavanaugh has disavowed broad discretion for federal agency authorities, cast significant doubts on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, and narrowly interpreted reproductive rights (most notably abortion services). He has supported gun rights pursuant to the Second Amendment beyond U.S. Supreme Court recent interpretations. His varying positions related to consumer protections, environmental regulation, and antidiscrimination protections lend further to major concerns on the maintenance of settled positions of the Court on these and other critical health issues.
Keywords: health care, health law, supreme court
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation