The US Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the
Affordable Care Act (ACA) means that from 2014 the 30 million
Americans who do not yet have health insurance, will have access to
“affordable” private health insurance plans, according to President
Obama.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into
law in 2010, but opponents of the reform had argued that the
law’s individual responsibility provision exceeds Congress’ power
to regulate interstate commerce because it penalizes
“inactivity.”
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Republican Presidential contender Mitt Romney
has vowed to act to repeal ACA – known as “Obamacare” if elected US
president.
President Obama’s administration said a major
impact of the Court’s decision is that 129 million people with
pre-existing conditions will have the security of affordable health
coverage. It added that millions of Americans will also be
eligible for tax credits to ensure that their health insurance is
affordable.
To date, the Obama administration said
360,000 businesses that employ 2 million workers have already
benefitted from the small business tax cuts in the law.
Therefore, once ACA takes full effect, the
administration said about 18 million individuals and families will
get tax credits for health insurance coverage averaging about
$4,000 each.
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By GlobalDataStepping up work
Following the court decision, President
Obama’s administration said it would step up its work with States
to implement Affordable Insurance Exchanges.
Exchanges are new marketplaces, starting in
2014, that will allow individuals and small businesses to compare
and choose private health plans.
Each State will take the lead in designing its
own menu of options.
Already, 34 States including the District of
Columbia have received 100 percent Federally funded grants to build
Exchanges.
President Obama said the Supreme Court’s
decision to uphold ACT was important for two reasons.
Obama said: “First, when uninsured people who
can afford coverage get sick, and show up at the emergency room for
care, the rest of us end up paying for their care in the form of
higher premiums.
“And second, if you ask insurance companies to
cover people with preexisting conditions, but don’t require people
who can afford it to buy their own insurance, some folks might wait
until they’re sick to buy the care they need — which would also
drive up everybody else’s premiums.”
