Thread: If Administration loses Supreme Court case on Obama Care, what's next?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015...are-what-next/

If administration loses looming Supreme Court case on ObamaCare, what's next?



By Shannon Bream
Published February 18, 2015FoxNews.com





What if the Supreme Court guts ObamaCare?




A looming Supreme Court case reviewing a key component of the Affordable Care Act is raising questions about what would happen if the Obama administration loses.


On March 4, the Supreme Court will be asked to decide whether the IRS illegally extended subsidies to millions of Americans in order to underwrite the cost of their health insurance policies under ObamaCare.


The language of the law says the subsidies will be awarded in states that set up their own exchanges, but more than three dozen states opted not to do that. Despite that fact, the IRS extended subsidies into those states.


Earlier this month, Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell told a Senate committee that a decision from the Court striking down the current subsidy structure would be "devastating," but refused to say if the administration has a back-up plan.


Some conservatives see that as an opening.


Grace-Marie Turner, founder of the Galen Institute, which advocates for free market health care reform, said GOP leaders are ready to step in.


Galen also said lawmakers could offer a temporary solution that would give states more control over subsidies, but stop short of gutting the ACA.


"I do think there's a chance that if they do this right, if they play their cards right, that the president would, in fact, sign it," Turner added.


Republicans, who control Congress after having won the Senate in November, say dismantling ObamaCare remains a priority. But they appear to think their best chance of undoing the 2010 law is the court case. And they have so far taken a wait-and-see approach, instead of trying to immediately repeal the law or dismantle it in parts.


Some ACA critics fear the Supreme Court may hesitate to block the current subsidies because of a lack of confidence in the legislative branch in general.


In an interview earlier this week, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg summed up her thoughts on Congress’ ability to step in where laws need to be updated or fixed.


"The current Congress is not equipped really to do anything," she said.


The Justices have extended oral arguments from the usual one-hour limit to 2.5 hours, with a decision due by late June.


The number of uninsured could rise by 8 million if the subsidies disappear, two independent think tanks have estimated.


“We have to have a contingency plan,” House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said last week.
Republicans and Democrats agree that a ruling for the plaintiffs could wipe out subsidies for millions of Americans, in three-fourths of U.S. states.


Shannon Bream joined Fox News Channel (FNC) in 2007 and is a Washington-based correspondent covering the Supreme Court. She also serves as the anchor of "America's News Headquarters" (Sundays at 12-2PM/ET). Click here for more information on Shannon Bream.

The number of uninsured could rise by 8 million if the subsidies disappear, two independent think tanks have estimated.

“We have to have a contingency plan,” House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said last week.
Republicans and Democrats agree that a ruling for the plaintiffs could wipe out subsidies for millions of Americans, in three-fourths of U.S. states.

Oh, you mean the family that earns close to $100,000 a year might lose part of their government hand-out to pay their health insurance with? Really? Oh, my heart breaks, not really, just joking. For the families who earn over median household income, they need to pay their own or look for jobs that offer health insurance. For the families who earn under $50,000 a year and neither works for an employer that has a health insurance program, expand Medicaid to include them, and charge them a large deductible. Or better yet, stay out of it and let Americans solve their own problems. By the way, when we get all these illegal aliens out of here, you're going to see a significant and startling reduction in the cost of health care, a dramatic increase in health care services, and many more employers providing health insurance allowances for their employees, not because the government told them to, but because market conditions will require it.

That said, the US House of Representatives does not need a contingency plan, it simply needs to act on a bill that repeals Obama Care in its entirety and then pass a simple 1 page bill that repeals the McCarran-Ferguson Act of 1945, prohibits denials based on pre-existing conditions, dropped coverages when you get sick, and rescission of policies without cause. The market will take care of the rest of it, and for those few that fall between the cracks, let them use Medicaid with a large deductible for a couple of years until it all works itself out. I'd much prefer to see Americans who are struggling use Medicaid for a short time until they can rise up and handle their own insurance needs than see the billions we're throwing away on illegal aliens and their needs.