June 1, 2012

By Warren Kagarise

NEW 12:20 p.m. June 1, 2012

In a stop at Issaquah High School early Friday, state Attorney General Rob McKenna defended Washingtons participation in a lawsuit against federal health care law, days before the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling.

Rob McKenna

The top legal officer in the state used the health care lawsuit to illustrate the concept of federalism powers shared by state and federal governments to seniors in Jeremy Ritzers Advanced Placement Government & Politics class.

The lawsuit stems from a provision in the Affordable Care Act a requirement for all Americans to enroll in a health insurance plan or pay a penalty.

Under that mandate, for the first time, Congress is attempting to do something which theyve never tried before in our countrys history, McKenna said. Theyre telling Americans that they have to go into the private markets to buy a commercial product health insurance with their own money.

If the Supreme Court upholds the health care law, the individual mandate is scheduled to go into effect in 2014.

The real motivation is to get younger, healthy people to subsidize everybody elses health insurance for them, McKenna said.

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Rob McKenna defends health care lawsuit in Issaquah High School stop