Illinois Policy Institute experts available to comment on the decision of a major court case that could be start of ObamaCare’s unraveling

WHAT: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Court has ruled today that the Internal Revenue Service does not have the ability to circumvent the original intent of the Affordable Care Act and provide insurance subsidies or impose individual and employer penalties in a state that has not created its own health-insurance exchange.

The case, Halbig v. Burwell, challenged the IRS’s rule that made insurance subsidies available in all states – contrary to what the text of ObamaCare itself says. In the original text of the health-insurance legislation, subsidies could only be obtained by individuals purchasing a plan “through an Exchange established by the State under Section 1311.” When many states, such as Illinois, refrained from creating their own exchanges, the IRS took it upon itself to essentially rewrite this portion of the law.

WHO: Illinois Policy Institute’s Director of Health Policy Naomi Lopez-Bauman and Jacob Huebert, Senior Attorney at the Liberty Justice Center, are available to speak on the decision in Halbig v. Burwell. Bauman and Huebert are experts based in Illinois who have researched this case and issue extensively.

For bookings, contact Diana Rickert or Nathaniel Hamilton (312) 346-5700 ext. 202

EXPERTS BAUMAN AND HUEBERT’S TAKE: 

• The legal implications of this case could disastrously affect ObamaCare’s implementation. The Obama administration will almost certainly immediately appeal to the Supreme Court, putting ObamaCare once again into the hands of the court.

• By clarifying the IRS rule, millions of businesses and individuals across the country will be exempt from the ObamaCare employer and individual mandates – and therefore will not face penalties for not buying or providing federally-qualified health insurance coverage.

• Congressional lawmakers, as well as state lawmakers in the 36 states that did not establish a state-based exchange, now have an opportunity to pass meaningful health reform in a way that respects taxpayers, provides for the truly needy and addresses health-care costs – delivering on the ObamaCare promises that never materialized.

• The decision is a serious rebuke to the Obama administration’s overreach in unilaterally implementing ObamaCare.

For interviews:  Diana Rickert or Nathaniel Hamilton (312) 346-5700 ext. 202