JUNE 17, 2015
36 Arizona legislators send joint letter urging Congress to clean up Obamacare
Freedom should be returned to states, patients, and taxpayers in wake of King decision
Thirty-six Arizona lawmakers from both chambers sent a letter today to House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, calling on Congress to take the lead in reforming ObamaCare, and to pre-emptively discourage any pressure to act from Washington if the law is gutted by the U.S. Supreme Court by their decision in King v. Burwell.
Since Congress passed ObamaCare in 2010, the law has faced a number of legal challenges, including the Supreme Court striking down mandatory Medicaid expansion in NFIB v. Sebelius. After that ruling, the Obama Administration placed increasing pressure on states to implement ObamaCare’s Medicaid expansion.
ObamaCare’s latest challenge in King will decide if individuals in states without exchanges are entitled to subsidies authorized by the IRS, which the plaintiffs claim are illegal. If the Justices rule in favor of the plaintiffs, states will likely face a wave of pressure from D.C. to repair ObamaCare by establishing a state-based exchange.
“ObamaCare has been little more than a restricting encyclopedia of broken promises, and if the Supreme Court rules in favor of King, Congress should take the opportunity to open the door for the states and the people to regain control of their health care decisions,” said Charles Siler, media relations director for the Foundation for Government Accountability, which coordinated the letter campaign.
“Arizona deserves better than to take on a massive liability and a giant fiscal risk just to preserve a poorly-written law that’s kicked people off of their health plans, taken people from their doctors, and driven up health care costs for many people in the state.”
Arizona’s legislators aren’t the only ones to encourage Congress to reform ObamaCare rather than turn to the states to be bailed out, with letters being sent by lawmakers in Maine, Tennessee, Georgia, and Arkansas in the last few weeks with many more expected to follow.
