Meaning Of 4 Words At Center Of Supreme Court ACA Fight
By MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press |
The lawsuit focuses on the health insurance marketplaces, or exchanges, that have been set up to allow people to find coverage if they don't get insurance through their jobs or the government. The challengers argue that the health law provides subsidies only to people who get their insurance through an exchange "established by the state." But most states have not established their own marketplaces and instead rely on the federal healthcare.gov.
The administration says that consumers in all 50 states are eligible for subsidies and that
Q. Why is the eligibility for subsidies such an important part of the law?
A. Aware of failed efforts on the state level to reduce the number of uninsured, the architects of the health law included three related requirements: Insurers can't deny coverage because of "pre-existing" health conditions; almost everyone must be insured, in order to get enough healthy people into the system; and consumers who otherwise would spend too much of their paycheck on their premiums get financial help in the form of tax credits. That last piece, the subsidies, is designed to keep enough people in the pool of insured to avoid triggering a so-called death spiral of declining enrollment, a growing proportion of less healthy people and premium increases by insurers.
Q. Would
A. The opponents say
Q. That seems pretty convincing. Has the administration given up?
A. No. The administration says the law's own "text, structure, design and history" refute the other side's arguments. Attempting to divine the meaning of four words in isolation from the rest of massive law is foolhardy, the
Q. What if the court concludes the language isn't as clear as each side says?
A. That should produce a win for the administration because
A. Independent studies by the
A. A three-judge panel in the federal appeals court in
Q. Is there a partisan or ideological slant apparent?
A. As with everything else involving Obama's health overhaul, the answer is a resounding yes. This latest lawsuit is part of a long-running political and legal campaign to try to kill the overhaul that passed
Copyright: | Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. |
Source: | Associated Press |
Wordcount: | 1070 |
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