[ad_1]
reOnce again, the Supreme Court is unlikely to do what Donald Trump wants. After the first hearing in the current dispute over the “Obamacare” health insurance system, it appears that the judges also do not want to abolish the “Affordable Care Act” of 2010 this time. It is the third time they are supposed to decide on the insurance system of Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama. With their attempt to abolish it politically in Congress, the Republicans failed in 2017, also due to some internal critics of the party.
That left the Supreme Court, where conservative Amy Coney Barrett’s recent appeal set the odds. Hopes have been dashed at public hearings on the issue. This says nothing about the decision, but a trend is clearly perceived. Presiding Judge John Roberts and Trump-appointed Judge Brett Kavanaugh hinted Tuesday that it was not the court’s job to abolish the 900-page legislation, even if the individual regulations were found to be unconstitutional. Trump and several Republican-run states are demanding that justices outlaw “Obamacare,” but if enough conservative justices joined the liberal three- to six-vote minority, they would have failed again.
A work of “right wing ideologues”
The dispute formally revolves around a fine that affects people who do not want to be insured. Formally, this penalty still exists, even if it was reduced to zero dollars. It should serve as a lever to defy the entire law. Forcing people to buy insurance with the threat of a tax penalty is unconstitutional, according to the plaintiffs.
Basically, it is not the job of the Supreme Court to abolish the entire set of rules because of potentially problematic regulation, Chief Justice Roberts said. New Judge Barrett asked at the hearing why Congress had not immediately removed the rule: Senators and MPs could come to a better conclusion together. Judge Samuel Alito, also a conservative, adopted a similar tone. The law apparently works without the penalty tax: “The plane did not crash,” Alito said at the hearing. This indicated that even conservative judges want to leave the future of “Obamacare” to politics.
Future president-elect Joe Biden described the abolition attempt in a speech Tuesday as the work of “right-wing ideologues.” Most people are behind the law, he said, referring to the popularity of the “Affordable Care Act,” which is supported by surveys of 55 to 60 percent of Americans. Future Vice President-elect Kamala Harris said abolishing Obamacare would return Americans to a time when insurance companies could charge higher premiums to women just for being women. During the election campaign, Biden promised to reform the system and introduce a publicly funded component.
“Medicare for All” is not the majority
The 2010 “Affordable Care Act” significantly improved the situation for many patients. For example, insurance companies might pre-screen people who had previous illnesses; A previous pregnancy or related complications could also be included. That is no longer possible with “Obamacare”. According to authorities, the reform has increased insurance coverage for more than 20 million Americans. Yet 28 million citizens remain without health insurance. You are too young to receive Medicare for the elderly and earn too much for Medicaid, which aims to provide medical treatment to the poorest. They can’t or won’t pay for “Obamacare.”
Insurance policies still offered by the private sector cost a lot of money and do not cover a number of health problems. The average “Obamacare” insurance was $ 393 per month in 2017. Additionally, there was an average copayment of $ 4,328 per year before the insurance was paid. For families, the median monthly contribution in 2018 was $ 1,021 and an annual contribution was $ 8,350. Meanwhile, drug prices continue to rise. Dental services must be insured separately or paid for yourself.
So overall, there is a lot of room for improvement. The proposed party ties to Bernie Sanders, a publicly funded general health insurance or “Medicare for all,” is currently not a majority among Democrats. Yet according to polls, around 70 percent of registered voters support this idea, not much less before the pandemic. The fact that this does not happen, and that centrist Democrats want, at best, a publicly funded option in health insurance, is also due to the success of lobbying by the big insurance companies.
The Supreme Court could soon give politicians another signal that the dispute over the future of “Obamacare” is primarily political and not legal. That would be a defeat for Trump and the Republicans, because reform cannot be reversed without a majority in both houses. It would be good news for the millions of people for whom this system works and for many Americans with pre-existing conditions. The millions of people for whom “Obamacare” still doesn’t work should pin their hopes on Biden and the next congress.
