Lawyers for the U.S. Department of Justice have asked a court to strike down key Obamacare regulations requiring insurers to offer coverage to those with pre-existing conditions at equal price, arguing that they are now invalid due to the passage of last year's tax law.
While the legal move still faces an uphill climb, it creates another cloud of uncertainty for insurers in the coming months as they finalize rates for the new year. It is also sure to embolden Democrats who plan to make healthcare a central part of their strategy to retake Congress in this fall's elections by arguing that Republicans led by President Trump are sabotaging Obamacare.
The latest legal twist for Obamacare arises out of a suit filed by 20 states led by Texas and Wisconsin which argues that because the tax law eliminated penalties for going uninsured, the individual mandate is no longer constitutional. The reasoning is that in 2012 the Supreme Court found the mandate constitutional by defining it as a tax, but absent the penalties, it is no longer a tax and thus cannot be constitutional. Given its centrality to the law, the plaintiffs argue, striking it down means that the rest of Obamacare must also fall.
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3 comments:
I just lost my prescription coverage. I'm canceling my insurance coverage. First time since I was 21 I won't have coverage and Obama just got a 50 million dollar contract with Netflix. So sad
Liberal Larry just tweeted this. I'm not sure he or Maryland has that power! I will be glad when we get a real Republican in the Governor's Mansion.
Governor Larry Hogan
2 minutes ago
Governor Larry Hogan Retweeted USA TODAY
This is simply wrong. If this attempt is successful I will propose legislation to restore coverage of pre-existing conditions in Maryland.
USA TODAY
@USATODAY
The Trump administration says key parts of Obamacare — including the provisions protecting those with pre-existing conditions — are invalid, a move that upends a longstanding norm that the executive branch will uphold existing laws.
My wife is very ill and we can no longer afford the premiums or prescriptions. Our only option now is pain management until death...Obama wasn't lying when he said if you're old then it's financially prudent to just give someone a pill instead of treatment. This is the reality of Obamacare.
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