美最高法院:醫改法案核心內容不違憲大綱
In a surprise conclusion to a constitutional showdown, Chief Justice John Roberts joined the Supreme Court's four liberals Thursday to uphold the linchpin of President Barack Obama's health plan, the individual mandate requiring citizens to carry insurance or pay a penalty.
美國最高法院首席大法官羅伯茨(John Roberts)週四與四名自由派大法官支持了總統奧巴馬(Barack Obama)醫改法案的核心內容，即要求美國公民投保否則將被處以罰款。這一有關醫改法案是否違憲的裁決結果出人意料。
By a 5-4 vote, the court held the mandate valid under Congress' constitutional authority "to lay and collect Taxes" to provide for "the general Welfare of the United States." The penalty for failing to carry insurance possesses "the essential feature of any tax," producing revenue for the government, Chief Justice Roberts wrote.
最高法院以五票贊成、四票反對做出裁決：根據憲法賦予國會的徵稅爲美國大衆福利提供資金的權力，醫改法案中提出的不投保將被處以罰款的內容有效。羅伯茨寫道：不投保將受到懲罰，這一點具有任何稅賦的基本特點，將爲政府創造收入。
Although the Obama administration always asserted the penalty was valid under the federal taxing power, until Thursday no court had fully accepted that theory. Those that upheld the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as the law is known, did so under Congress's constitutional power to regulate interstate commerce.
儘管奧巴馬政府一直堅稱，根據聯邦政府的徵稅權，不投保受到懲罰的內容是有效的，但直到週四之前，沒有一個法院完全接受這一理論。那些支持這部名爲《病人保護與廉價醫療法》(Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act)的人依據的是憲法賦予國會的監管州際商貿的權力。
The court did find one part of the law unconstitutional, saying its expansion of the federal-state Medicaid program threatened states' existing funding. The court ruled that the federal government can't put sanctions on states' existing Medicaid funding if the states decline to go along with the Medicaid expansion.
最高法院的確發現醫改法案的一項內容違背了憲法。最高法院說，醫改法案擴大了聯邦-州醫療補助計劃(Medicaid)，這樣做威脅到了各州現有的資金來源。最高法院裁定，如果有的州拒絕依照醫改法案擴大醫療補助計劃，聯邦政府不得針對該州現有的醫療補助計劃資金來源施加懲罰。
The ruling leaves the bulk of the law intact and means the fall campaign will present voters with a clear choice between Republicans who want to repeal the law and Democrats led by Mr. Obama, who spent much of the first 14 months of his term pushing his health overhaul through Congress.
最高法院的裁決使得醫改法案的大部分內容得以保留，意味着今年秋季的總統大選中選民將面臨明確的選擇：一邊是希望廢除醫改法案的共和黨，一邊是由奧巴馬領導的民主黨。奧巴馬上任後頭14個月的大部分時間裏都在努力推進醫改法案在國會獲得通過。
Addressing the decision from the White House, Mr. Obama declared victory while vowing to improve the law, a nod to its unpopularity among much of the public.
得知這一裁決後，奧巴馬在白宮聲稱自己取得了勝利，同時誓言將完善醫改法案，他的這一舉動相當於承認了該法案在很大一部分公衆中並不受歡迎。
"Whatever the politics, today's decision was a victory for people all over the country," Mr. Obama said. "We will continue to implement this law. And we'll work together to improve on it where we can. But what we won't do, what the country can't afford to do, is re-fight the political battles of two years ago or go back to the way things were."
奧巴馬說，無論政治局勢如何發展，今天的裁決都是美國全民的勝利，我們將繼續實施這項法律，我們將攜手完善這項法律中能夠完善的地方；但我們不會做的，也是美國無法承受的是，再打一場兩年前那樣的政治大戰，或是回到原狀。
Presumptive Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said: "What the court did not do I will do on my first day as president. ObamaCare was bad policy yesterday. It's bad policy today."
共和黨準總統候選人羅姆尼(Mitt Romney)說，最高法院沒有做的事，我將在就任總統第一天去做；奧巴馬醫改法案過去是糟糕的政策，現在仍是糟糕的政策。
