Smart Benefits: Supreme Court Will Hear Health Insurance Subsidy Challenge
Monday, November 10, 2014
In the coming months, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a challenge filed by four Virginia residents over the ACA tax credits awarded in 36 states that subsidize health insurance purchased by people on federal exchanges.
At issue is a four-word phrase in the law that says people qualify for tax credits when they buy insurance in an exchange “established by the state.” Only 14 states have set up their own exchanges; the rest have federal government-run ones.
The question is whether people can collect the subsidies even if they buy policies on a federal exchange. The IRS has ruled that tax credits are allowed whether the exchange is run by a state or by the federal government. The Obama administration says the IRS approach is consistent with the law’s aims, but the challengers say it is at odds with the law.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTA Supreme Court ruling against the administration would mean that more than half of the 7.3 million people who have bought Obamacare policies aren’t entitled to the subsidies they are receiving.
The court is expected to reach a decision in June.
Amy Gallagher has over 21 years of healthcare industry experience guiding employers and employees. As Vice President at Cornerstone Group, she advises large employers on all aspects of healthcare reform, benefit solutions, cost-containment strategies and results-driven wellness programs. Amy speaks regularly on a variety of healthcare-related topics, and is often quoted by national publications on the subject matter. Locally, Amy is a member of SHRM-RI, the Rhode Island Business Group on Health, and the Rhode Island Business Healthcare Advisory Council.
Related Slideshow: New England’s Healthiest States 2013
The United Health Foundation recently released its 2013 annual reoprt: America's Health Rankings, which provides a comparative state by state analysis of several health measures to provide a comprehensive perspective of our nation's health issues. See how the New England states rank in the slides below.
Definitions
All Outcomes Rank: Outcomes represent what has already occurred, either through death, disease or missed days due to illness. In America's Health Rankings, outcomes include prevalence of diabetes, number of poor mental or physical health days in last 30 days, health disparity, infant mortality rate, cardiovascular death rate, cancer death rate and premature death. Outcomes account for 25% of the final ranking.
Determinants Rank: Determinants represent those actions that can affect the future health of the population. For clarity, determinants are divided into four groups: Behaviors, Community and Environment, Public and Health Policies, and Clinical Care. These four groups of measures influence the health outcomes of the population in a state, and improving these inputs will improve outcomes over time. Most measures are actually a combination of activities in all four groups.
Diabetes Rank: Based on percent of adults who responded yes to the question "Have you ever been told by a doctor that you have diabetes?" Does not include pre-diabetes or diabetes during pregnancy.
Smoking Rank: Based on percentage of adults who are current smokers (self-report smoking at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and currently smoke).
Obesity Rank: Based on percentage of adults who are obese, with a body mass index (BMI) of 30.0 or higher.
Source: http://www.americashealthrankings.org/
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