SPLC brief supports Affordable Care Act in case that could strip millions of health care

The SPLC has joined the AARP and the National Health Law Program in filing an amicus – or friend-of-the-court – brief in a case that could determine whether millions of Americans will have access to health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit previously ruled in Halbig v. Burwell that subsidies for health insurance could not be offered through the federal health insurance marketplace, but only through exchanges created by states under the ACA.

The decision has since been vacated, and the case is set to be reheard by the full circuit court on Dec. 17. The amicus brief outlines how the federal subsidies are intended to be provided to all individuals seeking coverage.

If the full circuit court rules that subsidies cannot be offered through the federal marketplace, it would effectively revoke the health insurance of many people living in states that have refused to establish state exchanges under the ACA.

“We are calling on the court to protect the Affordable Care Act from those who would play politics with the health of our nation’s most vulnerable, including the elderly and working poor,” said Sam Brooke, senior SPLC staff attorney.

“The Southern Poverty Law Center believes that access to health care is a fundamental right and a crucial component of economic mobility that enables individuals to achieve the American dream. The Affordable Care Act is a key step forward for millions of the uninsured, one that people of every political stripe should embrace and improve, rather than politicize and tear down.”