DC District Court: Obamacare Subsidies ‘Unappropriated’

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) applauds today’s U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia civil action ruling the Obama administration has been improperly funding cost-sharing subsidies for up to 57 percent of people who have signed up for health coverage on Healthcare.gov. While the United States Congress authorized the Affordable Care Act into law, there was never an official appropriation of funds by Congress to cover out-of-pocket costs such as for deductibles, coinsurance, co-payments or similar charges that would otherwise make the plans unaffordable for millions of Americans.

The Obama administration will issue an immediate appeal to the decision, which if it is upheld could significantly increase health insurance premiums for the ‘silver’ level plans by as much as 20 to 30 percent, to make up for insurer losses. This decision is one of many examples illustrating how the artificial framework created through the provisions and mandates of the Affordable Care Act has created an unaffordable delivery system for healthcare in the United States.