Gov. Jim Gibbons says Nevada has officially joined at least 18 other states in a lawsuit challenging the federal health reform law.
In a statement Friday, the first-term Republican governor says an amended lawsuit adding Nevada as a plaintiff was filed Friday in Florida.
Gibbons has been an outspoken critic of the law signed in March by President Barack Obama. He and others claim it is unconstitutional because it would force people to buy health insurance or face penalties imposed by the Internal Revenue Service. He also says it would increase Nevada's Medicaid costs by $575 million.
Gibbons in April issued an executive order authorizing a private Las Vegas attorney to join the suit on Nevada's behalf after state Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto refused.
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