From Lt. Governor Kinder’s office:

JEFFERSON CITY – Lt. Governor Peter Kinder today released the following statement after Attorney General Koster filed an amicus brief in the Florida case:

“After thirteen months of inaction and indecision, Attorney General Koster has joined me in declaring the individual mandate to be unconstitutional. However, AG Koster fails to recognize what Judge Vinson clearly articulated and ruled, which is that the individual mandate is not severable from the Health Care Act and therefore the entire law is unconstitutional. AG Koster’s amicus brief in the Florida case, while welcome, is a day late and a dollar short. It does not adequately defend the Missouri Health Care Freedom Act or respond to the resolution passed by the Missouri General Assembly.

With the exception of AG Koster now agreeing that the individual mandate is unconstitutional, we are otherwise disappointed in AG Koster’s course of action. His filing of an amicus brief in the Appellate Court hearing the Florida case does not effectively advocate for the interests of Missouri citizens. I continue to urge AG Koster to join the lawsuit that I and other Missouri citizens have filed in federal court in Missouri. This case is the only case in the nation specifically defending the Health Care Freedom Act and rights of Missourians.

It is crucial that leaders of our state are willing to get in the battle for Missourians’ constitutional rights and freedoms, and not just comment from the sidelines.”