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Two state attorneys general are already preparing to sue Donald Trump over his Obamacare sabotage. California's Xavier Becerra and New York's Eric Schneiderman have stated their intention to take this to court. In Schneiderman's full statement, he said:
"Hundreds of thousands of New York families rely on the Affordable Care Act's subsidies for their health care—and again and again, President Trump has threatened to cut off these subsidies to undermine our healthcare system and force Congress to the negotiating table. That's unacceptable.
"I will not allow President Trump to once again use New York families as political pawns in his dangerous, partisan campaign to eviscerate the Affordable Care Act at any cost."
He then goes on to point out that federal courts have allowed the states to intervene in a case challenging the legality of the payments, first brought by then-House Speaker John Boehner and defended by the Obama administration. That case has been in limbo since January, while Trump has toyed with the payments. A coalition of 18 states moved to intervene in the place of the administration, since it wasn't going to defend the law. Schneiderman says that this "coalition of states stands ready to sue if President Trump cuts them off."
This will go to court. It's possible that consumer groups or insurers will join in and sue to block the withdrawal of these funds as well. It's also possible that Congress will have to clean up this mess and make a very simple corrective fix to the law to explicitly authorize these payments. One Senate committee—Health, Education, Labor, and Pension—has already started working to that end, with support voiced from state insurance commissioners, governors, insurance companies, and healthcare providers. It would likely take two-thirds majorities in both the House and Senate, however, to make the fix, because Trump would love nothing more than using his veto pen on an effort to save health care for millions of people.
Friday, Oct 13, 2017 · 4:07:33 PM +00:00
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Laura Clawson
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring weighs in:
I've been in touch with Governor McAuliffe and colleagues around the country who are just as concerned about this irresponsible decision and committed to protecting our citizens' access to affordable healthcare. We are currently examining all of the Commonwealth's legal options and intend to stand up to defend Virginians' access to affordable, quality healthcare."