A group of House Republicans thinks that if the Supreme Court strips federal Obamacare subsidies from the more than 30 states using the federal insurance exchange, Congress should respond by exempting those states from some of the toughest Affordable Care Act mandates.
The idea from Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., is a far cry from what Democrats mostly likely want to see, which is a legislative fix to restore the billions of dollars in subsidies that the high court might take away in the King v. Burwell case. But Gosar’s bill is a proposal that could quickly gain support among Republicans if the court rules that way.
Republicans will be under significant pressure to at least partially restore the subsidies if the court rules they’re illegal. While Republicans have opposed Obamacare from the start, they would likely be blamed for doing nothing to help millions of people who have insurance they can no longer afford without the subsidies.
Gosar’s plan is a strategic middle ground answer that could give Republicans a way to start talking about how to respond. Gosar says that instead of reimposing subsidies for people, Congress should move to make health insurance more affordable by exempting affected states from key Obamacare mandates.
“With the verdict of King v. Burwell looming, the healthcare reform conversation has focused on the fate of federal subsidies for insurance premiums initiated by the Affordable Care Act,” he said Thursday. “However, this puts the focus on the symptoms of our ailing healthcare system and ignores the root cause.”
“It is vitally important that we first address the primary driver of unaffordable premiums under Obamacare — onerous insurance regulations,” he added.
So far, House GOP leaders haven’t tipped their hand on exactly how they would respond. But on Thursday, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, indicated that Republicans would be looking for ways to provide “peace of mind” to people who lose subsidies, and said the GOP wants to increase choices for people instead of protecting Obamacare.
“[T]he plan we’re working on will focus on protecting the American people — offering new choices for quality, affordable healthcare — not protecting this failed law,” he said. “Yesterday, we had a constructive meeting with our members, and received good feedback that’ll help inform us as we continue to develop our plan.”
Gosar’s bill would eliminate key Obamacare insurance requirements, and follows a recommendation put out by the Heritage Foundation in May.
One of these requirements prevents insurers from charging older people more than three times the premiums of younger people.
Another mandate requires insurers to cover a wide range of “essential health benefits,” which Heritage says has increased insurance premiums by an average of 9 percent. A third mandate sets minimum amounts that plans must pay for covered services, another factor that Heritage says has led to higher insurance rates.
All of these mandates would be eliminated in Gosar’s bill, and Gosar said those changes would save younger people 44 percent in their premiums, and would save people close to retirement 7 percent.
Read his bill here:
