Beyond King V. Burwell … A Look At Another Legal Challenge To Obamacare
CNN reports on the pending lawsuit brought by House Republicans against the Obama administration. Meanwhile, other news outlets preview how the Supreme Court's decision in King v. Burwell could shake out, including possible state contingency plans and various other political and policy issues.
CNN:
The Other Challenge To Obamacare
The Supreme Court isn't the only federal court considering a challenge to the Affordable Care Act. Just down the street from the high court, District Judge Rosemary M. Collyer in the District of Columbia is considering another challenge brought by House Republicans. In the case, House Speaker John Boehner sets forth two claims: that the money for payments to insurance companies was not properly approved by Congress, and that the Obama administration attempted to rewrite sections of the landmark health care law concerning the employer mandate without permission from Congress. (de Vogue, 6/2)
Nashville Tennessean:
Experts Preview ACA Tax Credit Ruling Showdown
The health care industry has been on pins and needles awaiting a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a case that will decide the future of health insurance tax credits — and nearly three months after oral arguments, the decision month is here.
The plaintiffs in the landmark King vs. Burwell case argue that language in a section of the Affordable Care Act means that the credits are available only on state-run exchanges. Tennessee is one of 34 states that did not establish a state exchange, leaving the roughly 185,000 people in Tennessee who receive tax credits with uncertainty about the future of their health insurance. (Fletcher, 6/2)
CBS:
State Officials Huddle To Talk Obamacare Contingency Plans
Asked about the outcome of the meeting, Milbank Memorial Fund President Christopher Koller said he couldn't speak for the state officials who attended. That said, he told CBS News, "My own experience as a former health insurance commissioner who helped set up the state exchange in Rhode Island is that if the Supreme Court rules for King, states participating in the federal exchange will be in very complex situation regarding their individual and small group health insurance marketplaces and will be looking for federal guidance on what constitutes a state-based insurance exchange." The Obama administration says it doesn't have any contingency plans in the works in anticipation of the Supreme Court's decision, which is expected to come down in late June. (Condon, 6/2)
Politico Pro:
In Top Obamacare Spot, Coverage And Political Risks On The Line
The unlikely epicenter of Obamacare lies in a solidly Republican working-class town just 10 miles outside of the Miami stomping grounds of Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio. The city of Hialeah — a Cuban-American neighborhood of Spanish speakers that is blanketed with Obamacare advertisements — enrolled more people under the Affordable Care Act than anywhere in the country. That coverage is now at risk. ...Neither the Republican lawmakers who represent this community in Congress nor the national GOP have decided whether or how to respond if the court cuts off the subsidies and voters blame them for millions becoming uninsured. Some Republicans favor restoring the subsidies — if they can repeal big parts of the health law. Other conservatives want to ride out the political consequences by promising to build a new and better health law on the wreckage of Obamacare. (Haberkorn, 6/2)