Michigan Democrats come out against lawsuit squashing Obamacare
Several of Michigan’s top Democrats offered a full-throated defense of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Tuesday, as a federal appeals court in Louisiana considers its constitutionality once again.
The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals began hearing oral arguments Tuesday in Texas v. Azar, in which 20 attorneys general argue that the ACA is unconstitutional in full due to the removal of its individual mandate as part of the 2017 federal tax reform bill. The Trump administration, which previously backed Republican legislative efforts to fully “repeal and replace” the law, has endorsed the lawsuit, filing a brief in its support in May.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who earlier this year intervened on behalf of the ACA along with another group of attorneys general, released a statement Tuesday calling the new suit the “clearest indication of [Trump’s] intention to strip coverage from millions of Americans and decimate protections for pre-existing conditions.” She argued that “720,000 Michiganders could lose their coverage — leading to a 115% increase in our uninsured rate.”
The figure Nessel cites is the same as that predicted in a 2018 report from the Urban Institute. ACA insurance market analyst Charles Gaba wrote today that by his own calculations the number could be even higher, with more than 800,000 residents losing coverage.
Read more: https://www.michiganadvance.com/2019/07/09/michigan-democrats-come-out-against-lawsuit-squashing-obamacare/