Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Critics Of Obamacare Recalibrate After High Court Decision
The Wall Street Journal: Health-Law Foes Recalibrate Approach
Many opponents of the health law are putting away their legal wrecking balls and reaching for chisels. Thomas Miller, one of the strategists behind the Supreme Court case that aimed to strike down subsidies on the federal exchange, said he thought he would be celebrating now. But after Thursday’s decision upholding the subsidies, he is setting up meetings to discuss narrower attacks on the Affordable Care Act. (Armour, 6/26)
The Associated Press: High Court Ruling Offers Chance To Alter Health Law Debate
The country finally has an opportunity to change the subject on health care, after the Supreme Court again upheld President Barack Obama's law. There's no shortage of pressing issues, including prescription drug prices, high insurance deductibles and long-term care. But moving on will take time, partly because many Republicans want another chance to repeal the Affordable Care Act if they win the White House and both chambers of Congress next year. (6/29)
The Hill: Politics Shift On Obamacare
The politics of ObamaCare are shifting. A law that helped Republicans sweep into the House majority in 2010 and that contributed to Democrats losing the Senate four years later may be becoming a bigger political problem for the GOP than it is a liability for Democrats. The Supreme Court’s ruling on Thursday virtually guarantees that the law will remain in place for the rest of President Obama’s tenure, further entrenching ObamaCare as a new entitlement to stand alongside Medicare and Social Security. (Sullivan and Ferris, 6/29)
Politico Pro: Bipartisan Agreement By Ex-HHS Leaders: Move Ahead With ACA
Five former HHS secretaries — including three Republicans — praised the Affordable Care Act and said it’s time for the country to stop fighting over the law and start making it work better. The secretaries, from the Ford, Clinton, Obama and both Bush administrations, didn’t embrace Obamacare with equal enthusiasm, but all applauded the coverage expansion and said it created opportunities to improve Americans’ health. (Kenen, 6/28)
The Nashville Tennessean: King v. Burwell In Rearview, Employer Mandate To Dominate
The next bit of scrutiny on SCOTUScare — to borrow a new name for the federal health reform act coined by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia — ... is all about the workplace now that health insurance tax credits are securely in place. The jeopardy of tax credits overshadowed that employers have big changes ahead under the employer mandate of the Affordable Care Act. The Supreme Court affirmed in King vs. Burwell Thursday the federal government's position that tax credits, which help many people afford monthly insurance premiums, are available on both federally and state-run exchanges. (Fletcher, 6/28)
NBC News: More Lawsuits Remain Against Obamacare
If you thought the legal fight over the health care overhaul was finally over, think again. At least four issues related to the Affordable Care Act still are being sorted out in the courts, although none seems to pose the same threat to the law as the challenge to nationwide subsidies that the court rejected on Thursday, or the constitutional case that the justices decided in favor of the law in 2012. (6/26)
Fox News: ObamaCare Battle Not Over, Despite Court Ruling
President Obama declared Thursday that "the Affordable Care Act is here to stay," after winning yet another round in the Supreme Court. But the battle's not over -- a host of legal and political challenges remain, and if anything, Republicans say they are more emboldened than ever to repeal the law. (Beaucar Vlahos, 6/26)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Georgia’s Obamacare Stalemate Deepens
Now that President Barack Obama’s landmark health care law has twice been upheld by the nation’s highest court, Georgia’s state and federal leaders are coming to the begrudging recognition that the legislation won’t be changed any time soon. (Bluestein and Malloy, 6/27)
