Kansas lawmakers critical of federal health care reform are considering a rare procedural move that would force Attorney General Steve Six to join the mounting legal challenges against the new law.
Six, a Democrat, says he is reviewing the federal health care legislation before deciding whether to sue Washington.
The bill, introduced this morning in the Kansas House, would compel Six to sue on behalf of the House, which is ostensibly his legal client. Such legislation requires passage in only one of the state’s two legislative chambers, meaning the Senate couldn’t stop it.
Last week a proposed state Constitutional amendment designed to block the reform bill’s insurance mandate failed in the House.
No response from Six yet on the new legislation. There’s also no set time for a debate or vote on the bill this week, the last before lawmakers head home for a three-week break.
You may recall the House made the same move several years ago when it forced then-Attorney General Phill Kline to challenge the state’s use of Medicaid dollars to pay for abortions.