Yesterday, the Supreme Court announced that it would grant cert in Texas v. United States, the Trump-Republican lawsuit to overturn the Affordable Care Act. Press reports swiftly pointed out that with the court’s move to decide the fate of the ACA in its upcoming term, Trump faces a health care “nightmare” in his reelection bid. If his lawsuit is successful, Trump will have to answer for stripping coverage from millions, raising premiums and ending protections for 135 million Americans with pre-existing conditions during the 2020 election.
Associated Press: Supreme Court’s Decision To Weigh In On Texas Lawsuit “Will Keep Health Care Squarely In Front Of Voters.” “The Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide a lawsuit that threatens the Obama-era health care law, a case that will keep health care squarely in front of voters even though a decision won’t come until after the 2020 election.” [Associated Press, 3/2/20]
Associated Press: The Trump Administration “Has Always Supported Getting Rid Of Provisions That Prohibit Insurance Companies From Discriminating Against People With Existing Health Ailments.” “The Trump administration’s views on the law have shifted over time, but it has always supported getting rid of provisions that prohibit insurance companies from discriminating against people with existing health ailments. Even as the administration seeks to overturn “Obamacare” in court, President Donald Trump has claimed people with preexisting conditions would still be protected. Neither the White House nor congressional Republicans have specified how.” [Associated Press, 3/2/20]
Axios: The Supreme Court Could Be Trump’s ACA Nightmare. “The Supreme Court’s next big Affordable Care Act case could be a huge political problem for President Trump. Why it matters: The Trump administration will spend the next several months urging the court to strip away some 20 million people’s health insurance and to throw out protections for pre-existing conditions. And it may all come to a head just before Election Day.” [Axios, 3/3/20]
CNN: Obamacare Arguments Put Supreme Court And Health Care In Presidential Election Spotlight. “The Supreme Court agreed Monday to once again become the decider on the future of Obamacare — the controversial law that has become a fabric of society for the millions of Americans who have come to rely upon it. But the justices ensured something else as well. They guaranteed that over the next several months, as the presidential election rages on and legal briefs flood the zone, the fate of the law and the court will be front and center during the campaign.” [CNN, 3/2/20]
Washington Post: Supreme Court’s Obamacare Review Cheers Democrats With Election Year Health-Care Focus.” “The Supreme Court on Monday said it will review the latest Republican efforts to doom the Affordable Care Act, guaranteeing that partisan battles over health care will remain at the forefront of public debate in the closing weeks of the presidential campaign.” [Washington Post, 3/2/20]
New York Times: “One Issue That Could Be Particularly Consequential For The Election Is The Threat The Case Poses To The Law’s Protections For Pre-Existing Conditions.” “One issue that could be particularly consequential for the election is the threat the case poses to the law’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions. Those protections, which bar insurers from denying coverage to people with past or chronic illnesses or charging them more, are popular with Americans of all political persuasions. Democrats made them a huge focus of their successful 2018 effort to retake the House, and will undoubtedly put them front and center again.” [New York Times, 3/2/20]
POLITICO: The Supreme Court’s Decision “Increases Pressure On President Donald Trump Over Health Care, A Top Concern For Voters And An Issue That Has Benefited Democrats Since The GOP’s Failed Effort To Repeal Obamacare.” “The Supreme Court on Monday said it will take up a Republican challenge to Obamacare, in a move that boosts Democrats who want to highlight the lawsuit’s threat to health care coverage during campaign season. The justices said they would hear the case, likely later this year, after turning down an earlier request from Democrats to fast-track a ruling by June. The decision increases pressure on President Donald Trump over health care, a top concern for voters and an issue that has benefited Democrats since the GOP’s failed effort to repeal Obamacare during Trump’s first year in office.” [POLITICO, 3/2/20]
Vox: The Red States’ Legal Arguments Against Obamacare Are Widely Viewed As Ridiculous, Even By Many Lawyers And Scholars Who Spent Much Of The Last Decade Trying To Convince The Courts To Repeal [The ACA].” “The red states’ legal arguments against Obamacare are widely viewed as ridiculous, even by many lawyers and scholars who spent much of the last decade trying to convince the courts to repeal President Obama’s signature achievement. Jonathan Adler, a conservative law professor — and a leading evangelist for an earlier lawsuit seeking to undercut the Affordable Care Act by reading a poorly drafted provision of the law to cut off much of the act’s funding — labeled many of the red states’ arguments ‘implausible,’ ‘hard to justify,’ and ‘surprisingly weak.’ The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board labeled this lawsuit the ‘Texas Obamacare Blunder.’ Yuval Levin, a prominent conservative policy wonk, wrote in the National Review that the Texas lawsuit ‘doesn’t even merit being called silly. It’s ridiculous.’” [Vox, 3/2/20]