Michigan HHS mandate plaintiff brings court's attention to injunction granted in Colorado Federal Court

Yesterday, plaintiffs against a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate sent a letter to the United States District Court of the Eastern District of Michigan. The letter brought to the court's attention the injunction a federal district court in Colorado granted in the case of Newland v. Sebelius on Friday.

The plaintiffs, Weingartz Supply Co., its president Daniel Weingartz, and Legatus, had already requested an emergency temporary restraining order and are now waiting for the court's response.

A third case of a for-profit plaintiff against the HHS mandate is O'Brien v. Sebelius. But as the plaintiff's health plan's renewal date in that case is January 1st, don't expect to see them ask for a temporary injunction until we get closer to the end of the year.

For the same reason, we may see other companies file lawsuits as employers begin to understand the mandate, and as their health plan renewal dates draw closer after the mandate's August 1, 2012 effective date.

We saw this same effect with the lifetime and annual limit waivers. Requests for waivers didn't come all at once, but only as plan renewal dates drew near.