A lawsuit over the Affordable Care Act brought by Republicans could cause 20 million people to become uninsured and leave sick patients with higher costs if the GOP does not come up with a solution, the Washington Examiner reports.
"'When the gods wish to punish us they answer our prayers,'" said Democratic strategist Jesse Ferguson, quoting Oscar Wilde. "If the law is struck down, that will answer a 10-year prayer for Republicans, but voters will punish them for it."
The lawsuit concerns the elimination of the individual mandate, which opponents of Obamacare claim is essential to the law. An appeals court is currently considering the case after a federal judge ruled the healthcare law is unconstitutional, but any decision could be brought to the Supreme Court, which would have to decide whether to take it just before the 2020 election.
If the court declares the law unconstitutional, all of its widely popular provisions would be eliminated, including expanded coverage for the poor, requiring insurers to cover people with preexisting conditions, and allowing young people to remain covered by their parents' insurance until they are 26 years old.
"It helps magnify, or underscore, the fact that Republicans have no ideas on healthcare, and haven't since we passed the Affordable Care Act," said Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth, D-Ky., in reference to the suit. "In eight years in the majority and they never came up with an alternative. Now, if they are successful, they will also not have an alternative. We need to keep pushing that point: They can't be trusted on healthcare."
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