The US Supreme Court upheld Obamacare Thursday with a 6-3 vote.
Here is what Utah leaders are saying about the decision.
Gov. Gary R. Herbert issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court ruling in the Affordable Care Act case, King v. Burwell:
“I am very disappointed in the ruling from the Supreme Court this morning. Unfortunately, it appears the plain meaning of the text of the law no longer matters to the court. I have said from the beginning, the Affordable Care Act is flawed. Ultimately, we are a nation of laws and I will continue to work diligently to maximize state flexibility within the legal parameters. We must ensure federal tax dollars Utahns pay under this law provide optimal benefit to our state. I will continue to strongly support Republican efforts at the federal level to repeal and replace Obamacare with policies that provide access while addressing the rising costs of healthcare.”
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s ruling on King v. Burwell:
“Today’s ruling failed to hold the Obama Administration responsible for its reckless execution of its own poorly-crafted law. The plain text of Obamacare authorizes subsidies only through state exchanges, not the federal exchange. This decision allows the Obama Administration simply to ignore the law and to implement its own preferred policy instead.”
“Obamacare has been a series of broken promises from the start. From skyrocketing costs to less access to care and more bureaucratic control of the healthcare system, the President’s law has failed patients and taxpayers. And, unfortunately, absent a cooperative President, the negative consequences of Obamacare will continue. The American people deserve better.”
“Fortunately, Republicans have a plan to reverse this course by repealing and replacing Obamacare with reforms that put patients – not Washington – first. Moving forward, we will continue to seek input on our legislative proposal – the Patient Care Act – and use every opportunity available to give both states and patients more freedom and flexibility. We will continue to work toward real reform that lowers costs and helps Americans access high quality healthcare. By putting patients first, we will end the negative consequences of Obamacare and implement policy that is good medicine for American families.”
The Utah Democratic Party issued the following statement from Chairman Peter Corroon following the Supreme Court’s much-anticipated ruling in King v. Burwell:
“Tonight, 86,000 Utahns will go to sleep knowing conservative attempts to take away their health coverage have been thwarted yet again. The Supreme Court protected the right of millions of Americans to access affordable health coverage today, and it’s time for our state legislature to do the same by passing and implementing Medicaid expansion in Utah.
“Utah Democrats support the Affordable Care Act as the law of the land; but most importantly, we support Utahns, who deserve the right to quality, affordable healthcare. Now that the King v. Burwell decision has been made, our state legislature has run out of excuses to avoid passing Medicaid expansion. We urge our state lawmakers to work for the health and well-being of all Utahns by passing the Healthy Utah compromise as soon as possible.”
House Democratic Whip Rebecca Chavez-Houck said:
“It is time for Utah to act. There are no more "red herrings" to fish out. The decision has been made. The Affordable Care Act has provided accessible health coverage to so many Utahns, and now it is time to insure many more. Medicaid Expansion has been successful in neighboring states like Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. Let’s replicate that success. At the very least, let’s pass Healthy Utah and support those 128,000 of our friends and neighbors. Let’s make sure our families are healthy and supported. Let’s follow through on our promise by making Utah more fiscally sound, more apt to grow, with a healthy and happy population."
Rep. Chris Stewart (R-Utah) released the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's Obamacare Ruling:
"I’m extremely disappointed in the Supreme Court’s ruling today, and agree with Justice Scalia that “words no longer have any meaning.”
"The Supreme Court has chosen to disregard the plain language of the statute in favor of the Obama Administration. They have also chosen to disregard the harmful impacts of the law on Americans. I have heard so many personal stories from my constituents about how they’ve lost their trusted doctors, lost their health care plans and seen their premiums increased due to Obamacare. While undoubtedly some people have benefitted from the law, its overall impact appears overwhelmingly harmful to the U.S. healthcare system."
"Today’s Supreme Court announcement does nothing to lessen my resolve to replace Obamacare with a more patient centered health care plan. I remain convinced that Obamacare must be replaced with a plan that empowers patients by taking the government out of their health care choices and lowers costs by enabling the free market. I’m proud to be a co-sponsor of the Empowering Patients First Act, which does all of these things and I continue to push for its passage."
