The government of Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court, amid the coronavirus pandemic, to overturn the health law of U.S, better known as ‘Obamacare‘.
The High Court, which has ruled twice in favor of ‘Obamacare’ in the past, is now studying a case brought by some twenty states in the hands of Republicans who They argue that following legislative changes in 2017, the law is unconstitutional.
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This standard, formally known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) states that millions of Americans must buy health insurance or face a tax penalty that it was considered an individual mandate.
But in 2017 Congress removed the fine for people who didn’t sign up, suppressing a key part of the device devised by the government of President Barack Obama.
The Department of Justice (DoJ) then argues that “the individual mandate is not separable from the rest of the law.” Because of that, “the mandate is now unconstitutional as a result of the removal by Congress (…) of the fine for non-compliance, “he noted. As a result,” the entire ACA must comply with the individual mandate. “
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The Department of Justice also argues that coverage that protects people with pre-existing conditions and mandates that insurers cannot reject clients because of their age, sex, or health status, It must also be revoked.
In December 2018, a Texas federal judge had already declared the reform unconstitutional, opening legal litigation that is now in the hands of the Supreme Court with states in the hands of Democrats, who defend it.
The Executive, chaired by Donald Trump, resigned from exercising the defense of the law in this case, in an unusual decision, and now it has gone one step further aligning with demand drivers.
A White House spokesman, Judd Deere, said in a statement that “a global pandemic does not change what Americans know: ‘Obamacare’ has been an illegal failure. ”
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Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said about 130 million Americans could lose protections if the law is repealed.
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The truth is that the pandemic has caused millions depend on public health coverage given the massive destruction of jobs it has caused in the United States, the country in which the policies are associated with the employer.
In addition, the United States is the country hardest hit by the covid-19 with more than 2,420,000 confirmed cases and 124,000 deaths. It is likely that the new Supreme Court decision on ‘Obamacare’ does not come until 2021, after the next presidential elections.
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Trump had promised in campaign to dismantle ‘Obamacare’ with the motto “derogate and replace”, But his attempts failed in Congress after a dramatic vote in which the late Republican Senator John McCain supported the Obama law, the former president’s most cherished legacy.
Democratic Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi condemned the Trump administration measure and called it a “unusual act of cruelty” during the pandemic.
If approved, he stated, some 130 million Americans could lose ACA protections and up to 23 million could be left without insurance. “There is no legal justification or moral excuse for the Trump administration to take away healthcare from Americans,” he said.
EFE and AFP
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