In just a couple of months, we should get a ruling in the King v. Burwell Supreme Court case and should know the fate of the premium tax credits in those states using the Federally Facilitated Marketplace instead of "an exchange established by the state." Much has been written about the possible negative implications of a ruling in favor of the plaintiffs, and many of the disastrous consequences people are predicting could in fact materialize: millions could lose coverage; the individual health insurance market could go into a death spiral; and both hospitals and insurance companies could lose a fortune.

Agents, too, could be hurt by a ruling against the administration. Brokers across the country have spent the past couple years figuring out the Healthcare.gov website and working to get individuals enrolled in qualified plans and set up with financial assistance. If the subsidies go away, so would many of these clients.

The King v. Burwell case, though, isn't the only important decision on the horizon. Back on Jan. 6, the first day of this Congressional session, the Save American Workers Act was introduced by U.S. Rep. Todd Young, R-Indiana, and two days later it passed the House. It was referred to the Senate Finance Committee, where it was read twice and is still awaiting further action.

Continue Reading for Free

Register and gain access to:

  • Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.