On Top of the News
Supreme Court Upholds Obama Health Care Law
Washington Post | June 29, 2012

Behind the Headline
Court Jousters
Education Next | Summer 2008

Yesterday’s Supreme Court decision on the Affordable Care Act included a ruling on Medicaid that may have serious implications for education policymaking. The Court ruled that Congress went too far when it told states they would lose existing Medicaid funding if they did not comply with the law’s requirement that Medicaid be expanded. The decision raises questions about the power of Congress to attach coercive conditions to money it gives to states for education, among other things. In the Summer 2008 issue of Ed Next, Martha Derthick and Josh Dunn wrote about litigation related to NCLB in which states similarly challenged the ability of Congress to withhold large amounts of aid if states do not comply with new federal mandates.