June 2012 Archives

The countdown to the Supreme Court's decision in the health care case is on. Chief Justice John Roberts said Monday that the justices would be issuing rulings in the remaining cases on Thursday, which means, barring some extraordinary circumstance, that we will know then whether the Affordable Care Act will stand, fall, or move forward in some partial form.

The health care law would usher in a large reorganization of how many Americans get health insurance and of how Medicare pays providers for the care they offer seniors. In many important ways, the future of health care in this country will depend on what the Court decides. But in the two years since the law passed, insurers, providers and state governments have already begun making big changes. Which of those changes do you think will live on, regardless of the future of the health care law?

1 response: Meghan McCarthy

On Monday, the health insurer UnitedHealthCare announced that it will be preserving several consumer protections now required by the Affordable Care Act, regardless of what the Supreme Court opts to do about the health reform law. Even if the law is overturned, United will keep covering young adults on their parents' plans, offer preventive benefits with no copayment, and write all policies without lifetime limits, among other provisions. The company did not embrace every consumer protection imposed in the law, but did include many popular reforms that have already been enacted.

Do you think other insurers will follow United's lead? Do you think that these changes are here to stay, regardless of what the Courts or Congress do?

1 response: Ethan Rome