The Trump administration said in a court filing on Thursday that key provisions of the Affordable Care Act should be invalidated and that it won’t defend them.
The filing came in a lawsuit brought by the state of Texas and a coalition of other Republican-led states who have filed suit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas challenging the constitutionally of the Affordable Care Act. They argue that Congress destabilized sections of the law by eliminating the penalty for the individual mandate.
“In its filing, the DOJ said that it agrees with Texas that the individual mandate is now unconstitutional and therefore it will not defend key provisions of the law in the suit,” said Timothy Jost of Washington and Lee University School of Law.
The provisions DOJ insists on being invalidated offer protections for those people with pre-existing conditions. Namely, they require that insurers provide coverage to everyone regardless of their medical history, whereas, in the past, they could reject applicants who were ill.
Under another key provision of ACA, insurers were not allowed to set premiums based on a person’s health history. These two provisions were generally very popular among Americans, but despite providing major protections to people with pre-existing conditions, they also pushed up premiums for those who are young and healthy.
As a result, Republicans have targeted these provisions, seeking to repeal the law and lower premiums. Defenders of Obamacare condemned the move, calling it an attempt to “undermine the American health system.”
“Tonight, as the President and his administration launch their most dangerous sabotage effort yet, we are seeing just how far Republicans are willing to go in their quest to undermine the American health care system,” said Brad Woodhouse, campaign director of Protect Our Care.
Seventeen attorneys general filed a motion in April to defend the law, arguing that “the Texas lawsuit is based on a dubious legal claim with the sole goal of stripping Americans of their healthcare.”
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