Have you been hearing about the anticipated Supreme Court
ruling next week over health care?
Are you wondering what the scoop really is?
We found quite a few articles, but the one that we liked the most
was published by the New York times this week. We like this
article because it is so clear and provides so many statistics
presented in very clear images.
We highly encourage you to read the article yourself,
or at least look at the interactive charts and graphs
they provided. To entice you to do just that, below are
the questions they raised and screen shots of the relevant
charts and graphs.
How many people could lose their subsidies?
“If the court rules against the Obama administration in the King v. Burwell case, about 7.5 million people could lose their subsidies in 34 states that use the federal health care marketplace. The status of people in three other states — Oregon, Nevada and New Mexico — is unclear because those states at one time intended to run their own marketplaces, but now rely on the federal government to manage them.”
How would insurance coverage change?
“The effect of a court decision would not be limited to the people currently receiving subsidies in the federal marketplaces. People who buy their own health insurance in those states, even without subsidies, could be affected, because rates would increase if insurance pools become older and less healthy. Estimates from the Urban Institute prepared for The New York Times show how a post-King world would look compared with the current trajectory for the Affordable Care Act — or if the health law had never passed.”
Which groups would be most affected?
“The people who would lose their insurance are more likely to be white, high-school graduates, employed and from the South.”
What about the rest of the states?
“States that run their own insurance marketplaces would be unaffected by a court ruling, meaning a widening gap between insurance coverage in the two groups of states. The Urban Institute estimated the outcome for federal and state-run marketplaces by 2016.”
How will the states react?
“Under any court ruling, states will have the power to restore their residents’ subsidies if they establish their own exchanges. It would not be easy, but some states face more hurdles than others. Here is a look at the status of the states that could be affected. Some have already begun doing the work of building exchanges. Some have signaled weak interest and taken little action. Others have already set up legal impediments.”
How are you faring in this new health insurance environment?
Please do not hesitate to give us a call at 877.789.5831
or reach out using the confidential form on our Contact Us page.
We look forward to being of assistance!
