Podcast: Supreme Court Health Care Dispute Has High Stakes for Employers

Hosted by: David Weisenfeld

The Supreme Court will soon decide a case that may well determine the future of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA). At stake in King v. Burwell is whether Congress intended nationwide tax credits when it passed the ACA or whether tax subsidies were intended only for purchasers on a state-run exchange. Since 34 states do not have their own health exchange and rely on the federal marketplace, the ramifications for employers are significant.

This podcast gives listeners a unique perspective with coverage from both inside and outside the Supreme Court. Lawyers supporting the Obama administration say a ruling against the government would undercut the ACA and put millions at risk of losing their health insurance.

Supreme Court Health Care Dispute Has High Stakes for Employers

March 26, 2015

But challengers' attorney Michael Carvin claims a clear purpose of the ACA was to encourage states to establish their own exchanges, not for the federal Department of Health and Human Services to do it for them. Justice Antonin Scalia agreed, calling it "gobbledygook" that the federal government could establish a state exchange.

However, several justices expressed concerns about what it would mean as a practical matter if they accepted Carvin's argument, with some fearing that health care costs would skyrocket.

The podcast features the key questions on the justices' minds plus offers insights from former Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt and others.