The nation has been waiting with bated breath for the most consequential Supreme Court decision in over a decade.

This morning the Supreme Court issued its anxiously awaited ruling on the 2010 federal healthcare law–the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Specifically, the court announced three final opinions of the term before the summer recess.

It appears that the Supreme Court has upheld the healthcare reform law’s “individual mandate” in an opinion authored by Chief Justice John Roberts and joined in by Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan, and Sonia Sotomayor.

The high court concluded, as did the majority of lower courts, that Congress was acting within its powers under the Constitution when it required most Americans to carry health insurance or pay a penalty.  That provision was at the center of the two-year legal battle.

The ruling is a victory for Democrats and President Barack Obama, who had passed the biggest reworking of the nation’s healthcare system since the creation of Medicare in the 1960s.  It also averts disruption for employers who have spent more than two years preparing for changes in the law.

Despite the ruling, the law’s future remains uncertain.  Healthcare reform will remain hotly contested, and is bound to play a prominent role in political campaigns between now and Election Day.  Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and GOP leaders have pledged to repeal the law if they take control of Congress and the White House in November.

TASC Governmental Affairs will fully digest the ruling and examine the opinions before commenting further. Meanwhile, rest assured that TASC will continue to execute on the implementation of programs/legislation per PPACA mandates, and that we will obtain additional governmental guidance if necessary.