Right Wing States Blocked ACA from setting up Exchanges then sued to withhold subsidies because exchanges were not set up!
The Wall Street Journal News Alert
Appeals Court Strikes Down Some Health-Law Insurance Subsidies
A federal appeals court struck down the subsidies available to some consumers who buy health coverage on insurance exchanges established by the federal government, in a substantial blow to the Obama administration's implementation of its health-care law.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, on a 2-1 vote, invalidated an IRS regulation that implemented a key piece of the Affordable Care Act. The regulation said subsidies were available to qualifying consumers whether they bought coverage on a state exchange or one run by the federal government. The ruling potentially could cripple the act by making subsidies unavailable in as many as 36 states where the federal government has run some or all of the insurance exchanges.
The court sided with challengers who argued the health law allowed subsidies only for insurance purchases made through state exchanges.
What Really Happened with Obamacare (?)
The plan was that each state would set up its own ACA exchange and citizens would get individualized health insurance based on their needs and regional costs. The federal exchange was not designed to help 50,000,000 (50 million) people.
What happened was that 30 or more states, all run by republican right wing Governors and/or Legislatures, refused to set up their own exchanges. The result was that a website designed for under 10 million attendees was overwhelmed by 5 or 10 times the numbers expected and it could not handle it. Think of this. THIS IS WHAT HACKERS DO TO SHUT DOWN WEBSITES! This is what the republican party did.
This was a concerted effort by one political party to destroy what was voted into law. There was no concern for the needs of the people in those states who need health insurance. According to the recent republican presidential candidate, people who need health care call an ambulance and go to the hospital. No concern for preventive care or care of chronic conditions. No understanding that healthcare contributes to manufacturing efficiency and school attendance. Their definition of capitalism is “controlled bankruptcy”, not rebuilding a middle class. On the contrary, their idea of a middle class is to destroy unions. Their idea of health insurance companies is that the CEO can make 30 million dollars and not pay doctors and hospitals the fees they deserve.
I still remember Darrell Issa on TV saying that Amazon and EBay built websites that serve millions of people. He implied that the ACA website was mismanaged and incompetent.
Well, selling the same book titled Alice in Wonderland from California to Maine isn’t the same as individualizing many different features of an insurance policy that varies from region to region and individual to individual. Mr. Issa is indeed living in his own wonderland.