Supreme Court ruling on Affordable Care Act tax subsidies could affect millions, Baker Institute expert says

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David Ruth
713-348-6327
david@rice.edu

Jeff Falk
713-348-6775
jfalk@rice.edu

Supreme Court ruling on Affordable Care Act tax subsidies could affect millions, Baker Institute expert says

HOUSTON – (March 4, 2015) – A suit that could have massive consequences for people who have become insured through the federal marketplace gets a hearing before the Supreme Court today. The court’s ruling could reverberate throughout the country’s health care system, according to Vivian Ho, a health care economist at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Credit: thinkstockphotos.com/Rice University

“If the plaintiffs in this case win, all individuals purchasing their own insurance will face extraordinary premium increases,” said Ho, who is also a professor of economics. “Those premiums will be unaffordable for most people who bought insurance through their state marketplace. The repercussions of 8 million people suddenly losing health insurance would reverberate throughout the health care system.”

The suit revolves around a particular phrase in the Affordable Care Act. In the provision authorizing tax subsidies to make health plans affordable, the act reads that the subsidies will be available for plans “enrolled in through an Exchange … established by the State.” Pennsylvania and New Jersey are among the 27 states that did not establish exchanges and instead opted to use the federal exchange. The plaintiffs claim that no one in those 27 states should be eligible for subsidies. A decision is expected in June.

Ho, who is also a professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, is available to comment on the state of the Affordable Care Act and the issues at play before the Supreme Court.

For more information or to interview Ho, contact Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

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Related materials:

Ho biography: http://bakerinstitute.org/experts/vivian-ho.

Founded in 1993, Rice University’s Baker Institute ranks among the top 10 university-affiliated think tanks in the world. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows, Rice University faculty scholars and staff, coupled with its outreach to the Rice student body through fellow-taught classes — including a public policy course — and student leadership and internship programs. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog.