Top Story, Policy

Supreme Court rules to uphold Obamacare in a 6-3 vote

Obamacare remains alive and well as the U.S. Supreme Court rejects opposition.

By Nicole Oran on June 25, 2015

This story will be updated with additional comments throughout the day

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in favor of Obama’s healthcare law with a 6-3 vote by the justices. They concluded that consumers will continue to qualify for a subsidy that lowers the cost of premiums whether they buy their coverage through federal or state exchanges.

Currently, only 16 states now have their own health exchanges up and running, so with this ruling, Americans who have used HealthCare.gov will continue to have subsidies that reduce their premiums an average of 72 percent, saving an average of $270 a month.

This is great news for those relying on their current coverage and subsidies, and (surprisingly) a Fox News reporter is on board with the decision as well.

Commentary following the decision can be found at the SCOTUS blog, and the Court’s full opinion is available here.

This was the lead opinion from Chief Justice John Roberts: “Congress passed the Affordable Care Act to improve health insurance markets, not to destroy them. If at all possible, we must interpret the Act in a way that is con-sistent with the former, and avoids the latter. [The provision for subsidies known as Section 36B] can fairly be read consistent with what we see as Congress’s plan, and that is the reading we adopt.”

We’ll have ongoing contributions as the news continues to spread and opinions roll out — like this from Justice Antonin Scalia:

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Here’s some feedback on the decision from NPR’s Renee Montagne, Nina Totenberg and Mara Liasson:

Keep updated with these tweets and others with #KingvBurwell:

https://twitter.com/FishingwFredo/status/614123367222902784

https://twitter.com/JoshDorner/status/614078317315141632

Dr. Hemant Sindhu, MD and President of the Committee of Interns and Residents released this statement today on the decision:

Today’s Supreme Court decision in King v. Burwell is a relief for the 6.4 million Americans whose own coverage was put at risk by this purely political case. It’s a lifeline for the millions more who are expected to join the ranks of the newly insured in the years to come, thanks to the Affordable Care Act. It is a victory for providers and patients who have worked for years to ensure that the United States lives up the promise embedded in the Affordable Care Act — to put quality, affordable healthcare within reach of as many patients and working families as possible.

Given that insurance industry tech startups have raised $2.1 billion since 2010, and health insurance represents a big piece of that, we thought it would be worth asking how they were taking the news. In a phone interview with Sally Poblete, the founder and CEO of Wellthie, she said:

“I think the decision is clear in terms of what the law provides. The work of startups — There’s still so much ahead for startups to do. There is still a lack of awareness from consumers. There’s lots that can be done to educate consumers and make the process of getting and having insurance better for them.”

Photo: Instagram user tedeytan