Millions of Americans who obtained health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, are now breathing a sigh of relief, following a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.
More than 6 million lower income Americans got subsidies to help them buy health insurance on the federal marketplace, known as healthcare.gov. Without those subsidies, most of them wouldn’t be able to afford the premiums.
In a 6-to-3 decision, the Supreme Court upheld the validity of subsidies obtained on those federal exchanges. That includes 70,000 people in Kansas and 200,000 in Missouri--people like Mike in Lawrence, who called a Kansas City radio talk show to say he was “ecstatic” about the court’s decision. He said he had an $18,000 doctor’s bill recently for vertigo and neuritis.
“I only had to pay $2,900 of that," Mike sais. "Previously I would have been bankrupted by debt like this.”
Former Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, a Republican who supports the law, says the court made the right decision. She says if the court had invalidated the subsidies, "It would have created chaos in the marketplace."
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, says the decision could also help his state move forward on Medicaid expansion.
"This should be the last impediment to moving forward and I hope the Legislature works with me to get that done," he says.
Obamacare opponents criticized the decision. Kansas Congressman Tim Huelskamp says Congress should renew its efforts to repeal the health reform law.
The court’s ruling was a huge victory for President Obama, making it likely that his signature piece of domestic legislation will endure for years to come.
Dan Margolies is a reporter with Heartland Health Monitor.
