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Maine Community Health Options v. United States

Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, No. 2017-2395 · judgment July 9, 2018

Decided · April 27, 2020
Pre-decision estimate: 15% cert probability (95% interval 10%–23%)

Before the decision, about 3.7× the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for counsel who has won certiorari before, a circuit split argued in the petition, and a dissent in the court below (flagged in the petition).

Questions presented

Consolidated with 18-1028.

  1. Given the "cardinal rule" disfavoring implied repeals-which applies with "especial force" to appropriations acts and requires that repeal not be found unless the later enactment is "irreconcilable" with the former-can an appropriations rider whose text bars the agency's use of certain funds to pay a statutory obligation, but does not repeal or amend the statutory obligation, and is thus not inconsistent with it, nonetheless be held to impliedly repeal the obligation by elevating the perceived "intent" of the rider (drawn from unilluminating legislative history) above its text, and the text of the underlying statute?

  2. Where the federal government has an unambiguous statutory payment obligation, under a program involving reciprocal commitments by the government and a private company participating in the program, does the presumption against retroactivity apply to the interpretation of an appropriations rider that is claimed to have impliedly repealed the government's obligation?

Counsel of record

For petitioner
Paul D. Clement
Clement & Murphy, PLLC

For respondent
Noel John Francisco
Jones Day

Case

Conference history
Distributed for 2 conferences

Amicus briefs
2 cert-stage · 10 merits
(9 supporting pet./neither, 1 respondent)

Related
Vide, 18-1028, 18-1038

Argument & decision

Argued December 10, 2019 — Paul D. Clement · Edwin S. Kneedler. Audio and transcript

Decided April 27, 2020. Opinion by Sotomayor.

Proceedings

  1. May 29 2020
    JUDGMENT ISSUED.
  2. Apr 27 2020
    Judgment REVERSED and case REMANDED. Sotomayor, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, and Kavanaugh, JJ., joined, and in which Thomas and Gorsuch, JJ., joined as to all but Part III–C. Alito, J., filed a dissenting opinion. VIDED.
  3. Dec 10 2019
    Argued. For petitioners: Paul D. Clement, Washington, D. C. For respondent: Edwin S. Kneedler, Deputy Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. VIDED.
  4. Nov 20 2019
    Reply of petitioner Moda Health Plan, Inc. filed (in 18-1028). (Distributed)
  5. Nov 20 2019
    Reply of petitioner Land of Lincoln Mutual Health Insurance Company filed. VIDED. (Distributed)
  6. Nov 19 2019
    Reply of petitioner Maine Community Health Options filed (in 18-1023). (Distributed)
  7. Nov 12 2019
    Motion for enlargement of time for oral argument and for divided argument DENIED. VIDED.
  8. Nov 05 2019
    Record from the U.S.C.A. Federal Circuit is electronic and located on Pacer.
  9. Oct 25 2019
    CIRCULATED
  10. Oct 25 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of Americans for Prosperity filed. VIDED. (Distributed)
  11. Oct 25 2019
    Motion for enlargement of time for oral argument and for divided argument filed by petitioners. VIDED.
  12. Oct 23 2019
    Record requested from the U.S.C.A. Federal Circuit.
  13. Oct 21 2019
    Brief of respondent United States filed. VIDED.
  14. Oct 07 2019
    Motion to dispense with printing the joint appendix filed by petitioners GRANTED. VIDED.
  15. Sep 13 2019
    SET FOR ARGUMENT on Tuesday, December 10, 2019. VIDED.
  16. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of America's Health Insurance Plans filed. VIDED
  17. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America filed (in 18-1028).
  18. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amici curiae of Highmark Inc., et al. filed. VIDED.
  19. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of Blue Cross Blue Shield Association filed. VIDED.
  20. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of National Association of Insurance Commissioners filed. VIDED.
  21. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amici curiae of 24 States and the District of Columbia filed. VIDED.
  22. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of Association for Community Affiliated Plans filed. VIDED
  23. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amici curiae of Wisconsin Physicians Service Insurance Corporation and WPS Health Plan, Inc. filed. VIDED.
  24. Sep 06 2019
    Brief amici curiae of Economists and Professors M. Kate Bundorf, et al. filed. VIDED
  25. Aug 30 2019
    Brief of petitioner Maine Community Health Options filed.
  26. Aug 30 2019
    Brief of petitioner Land of Lincoln Mutual Health Insurance Company filed. VIDED.
  27. Aug 30 2019
    Brief of petitioners Moda Health Plan, Inc., and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina filed (in 18-1028).
  28. Aug 16 2019
    Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Land of Lincoln Mutual Health Insurance Compan, and Illinois Nonprofit Insurance Corporation
  29. Jul 30 2019
    Motion to dispense with printing the joint appendix filed by petitioners. VIDED.
  30. Jul 17 2019
    Joint motion of the parties for an extension of time to file the briefs on the merits filed. VIDED.
  31. Jul 17 2019
    Joint motion of the parties to extend the time to file the briefs on the merits granted. The time to file the joint appendix and petitioners' briefs on the merits is extended to and including August 30, 2019. The time to file respondent's brief on the merits is extended to and including October 21, 2019. VIDED.
  32. Jul 12 2019
    Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Moda Health Plan, Inc.
  33. Jun 28 2019
    Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Maine Community Health Options
  34. Jun 24 2019
    Petition GRANTED. The petitions for writs of certiorari in No. 18-1028 and No. 18-1038 are granted. The cases are consolidated, and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument. VIDED.
  35. Jun 24 2019
    Because the Court has consolidated these cases for briefing and oral argument, future filings and activity in the cases will now be reflected on the docket of No. 18-1023. Subsequent filings in these cases must therefore be submitted through the electronic filing system in No. 18-1023. Each document submitted in connection with one or more of these cases must include on its cover the case number and caption for each case in which the filing is intended to be submitted. Where a filing is submitted in fewer than all of the cases, the docket entry will reflect the case number(s) in which the filing is submitted; a document filed in all of the consolidated cases will be noted as “VIDED.” (July 17, 2019)
  36. Jun 17 2019
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/20/2019.
  37. May 28 2019
    DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/13/2019.
  38. May 22 2019
    Reply of petitioner Maine Community Health Options filed.
  39. May 08 2019
    Brief of respondent United States in opposition filed. VIDED.
  40. Apr 01 2019
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including May 8, 2019.
  41. Mar 29 2019
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from April 8, 2019 to May 8, 2019, submitted to The Clerk.
  42. Mar 08 2019
    Brief amici curiae of Economists filed. VIDED.
  43. Mar 08 2019
    Brief amicus curiae of Blue Cross Blue Shield Association filed. VIDED.
  44. Feb 27 2019
    Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including April 8, 2019.
  45. Feb 25 2019
    Motion to extend the time to file a response from March 8, 2019 to April 8, 2019, submitted to The Clerk.
  46. Feb 22 2019
    Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Maine Community Health Options
  47. Feb 04 2019
    Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due March 8, 2019)