Willis v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

38 F. Supp. 3d 1274, 2014 WL 3870026, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108072
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Oklahoma
DecidedAugust 6, 2014
DocketCase No. CIV-14-261-R
StatusPublished

This text of 38 F. Supp. 3d 1274 (Willis v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Willis v. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 38 F. Supp. 3d 1274, 2014 WL 3870026, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108072 (W.D. Okla. 2014).

Opinion

ORDER

DAVID L. RUSSELL, District Judge.

Before the Court is Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss. Doc. No. 16. For the following reasons, this motion is GRANTED, and Plaintiffs case is DISMISSED in its entirety.

Plaintiff Kimberly Willis alleges she was diagnosed with cancer in 2003.1 In dealing with her cancer, she allegedly chose natural treatment methods as opposed to conventional medicine. During her fight with cancer from 2003 to the present, Plaintiff alleges that she has not had health insurance, and she further states that she does not plan on acquiring any health insurance in the future.

Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, Plaintiff has sued the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services in her official capacity, the Internal Revenue Service, the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service in his official capacity, the United States Department of the Treasury, the Secretary of the United States Department of the Treasury in his official capacity, and the President of the United States in his official capacity. Plaintiff asserts that in enacting the mandates contained in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Defendants violated the liberty provided to her [1276]*1276in the Constitution, as well as “the choices that [she] make[s] to care for [her] personal Health & Wellness as an Independent and Sovereign individual.” Doc. No. 1, at 2. Because of this, Plaintiff has requested a permanent injunction prohibiting Defendants from enforcing any part of the ACA, including its penalties, against her.

Defendants have moved to dismiss Plaintiffs case under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) and (6), arguing: (1) that Plaintiff lacks standing; (2) that the Court lacks jurisdiction under 42 U.S.C. § 1983; (3) that the Court lacks jurisdiction to enjoin the President from performing his official duties; and (4) that Plaintiff has failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. The Court agrees with each of these propositions.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) empowers a court to dismiss a complaint for a lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The party asserting jurisdiction bears the burden of establishing its existence. See Basso v. Utah Power & Light Co., 495 F.2d 906, 909 (10th Cir.1974). As Defendants’ motion is clearly a facial attack on jurisdiction, the Court must accept all allegations contained in Plaintiffs Complaint as true. Holt v. United States, 46 F.3d 1000, 1002 (10th Cir.1995) (citation omitted).

A party may move to dismiss a complaint for a lack of standing under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1). See Wilderness Soc’y v. Kane Cnty., 632 F.3d 1162, 1167-68 (10th Cir.2011); Colo. Envtl. Coal. v. Wenker, 353 F.3d 1221, 1227 (10th Cir.2004). To establish standing, a plaintiff must allege an injury that is “concrete, particularized, and actual or imminent; fairly traceable to the challenged action; and redressable by a favorable ruling.” Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms, 561 U.S. 139, 149, 130 S.Ct. 2743, 177 L.Ed.2d 461 (2010) (citation omitted).

The allegations in Plaintiffs Complaint are altogether deficient with respect to standing. Absent from Plaintiffs allegations is anything establishing a concrete, particularized, and actual or imminent injury, which is fairly traceable to the ACA and redressable by this Court. Plaintiff does not even allege that she is subject to the ACA, let alone subject to the ACA’s minimum essential coverage provision that requires the procurement of insurance or taxes the individual for failing to do so. Plaintiff also fails to identify either the provisions contained in the ACA that allegedly violate her constitutional liberties, or the provisions of the Constitution that the ACA violates. It is thus abundantly clear that Plaintiff has only asserted a generalized grievance about the government in this case, for which no standing lies. See Baldwin v. Sebelius, 654 F.3d 877, 879 (9th Cir.2011) (citing Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife, 504 U.S. 555, 573-74, 112 S.Ct. 2130, 119 L.Ed.2d 351 (1992)). Therefore, Plaintiffs case is DISMISSED.

Plaintiff has also failed to properly invoke the Court’s jurisdiction in this case. Plaintiff has attempted to invoke the Court’s jurisdiction pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Yet Section 1983 “applies to actions by state and local entities, not to the federal government.” Belhomme v. Widnall, 127 F.3d 1214, 1217 (10th Cir.1997) (citations omitted). Further, this section does not apply to federal officers acting under color of federal law. Campbell v. Amax Coal Co., 610 F.2d 701, 702 (10th Cir.1979) (citation omitted). Therefore, Plaintiffs attempt at suing three federal agencies and four federal officers acting in their official capacities under federal law pursuant to Section 1983 is clearly improper.

Plaintiffs argument in her response brief only amplifies the futility of her position. In her response, Plaintiff argues [1277]*1277that the federal government is a trustee created by the people, and trustees are included in the definition of the term “person” under 29 U.S.C. § 152. Plaintiff asserts that this means that “the United States and its governmental entities are ‘persons’ within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. [§ ]1983.” Doc. No. 18, at 4. Notwithstanding the fact that the definitions contained in 29 U.S.C. § 152 do not apply to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and instead apply to Subchapter II of Chapter 7 of Title 29 of the United States Code,2 Plaintiffs position is in direct conflict with the controlling precedent previously cited by the Court. It follows that Plaintiff has failed to invoke the Court’s jurisdiction, and her case is DISMISSED.

Plaintiff has also attempted to sue the President of the United States in his official capacity, requesting a permanent injunction prohibiting him from enforcing any part of the ACA against her.

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Belhomme v. Widnall
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Dill v. City of Edmond
155 F.3d 1193 (Tenth Circuit, 1998)
Colorado Environmental Coalition v. Wenker
353 F.3d 1221 (Tenth Circuit, 2004)
Baldwin v. Sebelius
654 F.3d 877 (Ninth Circuit, 2011)
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Basso v. Utah Power & Light Co.
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Hall v. Bellmon
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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
38 F. Supp. 3d 1274, 2014 WL 3870026, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 108072, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/willis-v-us-department-of-health-human-services-okwd-2014.