Will Wickard v. Filburn Save the Health Bills?

Abstract

<p>Only a small group of constitutional scholars would have anticipated that a key agricultural case, <em>Wickard v. Filburn,</em><strong>1 </strong>would play an important role in the determination of the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.<strong>2 </strong>With the United States Supreme Court announcement on November 14, 2011, granting certiorari in the case of <em>State of Florida v. Health and Human Services,</em><strong>3 </strong>to hear the case in the 2011- 2012 term, the decision will likely rank highly in importance for cases heard this century and will likely add luster to the oft-cited case of <em>Wickard v. Filburn</em>.<strong>4</strong> Regardless of the side one is on, it is fascinating that a battle waged more than 70 years ago by a small Ohio farmer could have provided some of the guidance for one of the more important judicial decisions of the Twenty-First Century</p>