U.S. appeals court voids Obamacare ‘individual mandate’

WASHINGTON, Dec 18 (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court ruled on Wednesday that a component of the Obamacare law is unconstitutional but stopped short of declaring that the rest of the landmark 2010 healthcare statute must also be struck down.

The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on a 2-1 vote that the law’s individual mandate that directed Americans to obtain health insurance – a provision already gutted by Republican-backed legislation passed in Congress – was unlawful.

But the court avoided answering the key question of whether the rest of the law can remain in place, instead sending the case back to a district court judge for further analysis. (Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Sandra Maler)