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Re-activateYou might think so if you happened to glance at headlines like this one on MSNBC: "Federal Judge Strikes Down Health Care Law."
But the answer is no, health reform has not been overturned. If you are already benefiting from changes created by the Affordable Care Act, you needn't worry that they are about to vanish.
The Dec. 13 ruling by Henry E. Hudson, a Richmond, Va., federal district judge, found that just one aspect of the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional: the so-called "individual mandate" that, come 2014, will require all Americans to have health insurance unless they can prove they can't afford it.
Hudson is the first federal judge to rule against any aspect of the law. Two other federal judges, in Michigan and another city in Virginia, have upheld the individual mandate. A number of other anti-reform lawsuits are still pending. "This is a case that will likely wind up in the Supreme Court," said DeAnn Friedholm, director of health reform for our parent organization, Consumers Union.
But Judge Hudson's ruling did not affect any other parts of the new law, including all of the parts that have already started, such as:• Allowing young adults to stay on their parents' plans until their 26th birthdays.
• An end to lifetime limits on coverage.
• Creation of state high-risk insurance plans to cover uninsured people with pre-existing medical conditions.
• Prohibiting insurers from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions.
• Giving subsidies to small businesses to help them offer group coverage for their employees.
"Until there is a final decision," Friedholm said, "we will continue to work hard to educate consumers about what is really in the health law and how they can get the best benefits from the system for their family's health and pocketbook."
-- Nancy Metcalf, Senior Program Editor
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