The Obama administration said today that it would not appeal its health care loss to the full court of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The decision means the administration will appeal the decision directly with the Supreme Court, increasing the likelihood that the high court could decide the issue before the next presidential election.

The 11th circuit is the only appeals court so far that has struck down the individual mandate. The 6th Circuit upheld the mandate and the 4th Circuit dismissed two challenges on jurisdictional grounds. The DC circuit heard a challenge last Friday.

The challenge in the 11th circuit is perhaps one of the most high profile cases because it was brought by 26 states and the National Federation of Business.

The lawyer for the states is former Solicitor General Paul Clement, on of the best Supreme Court advocates in the country.

The timing, of course, is ultimately up to the Supreme Court. Because the circuits have split on a major piece of congressional legislation it is likely that the Supreme Court would ultimately step in and decide the issue, but it could choose not to hear the issue this term.