US Supreme Court rejects Obamacare case

Republicans tried to declare health care reform completely unconstitutional. They started with an earlier ruling by the US Supreme Court in 2012. At the time, the requirement to have health insurance or pay a fine was challenged. The Supreme Court left the clause in effect, classifying it as a tax. Then the Republican-controlled Congress reduced the sentence to zero. On this basis, they now argued in court that there was no longer any question of taxation because there was no longer any income – and that without the clause, the entire law would be null and void.

However, seven of the nine US Supreme Court justices have disputed this line of arguments – including those proposed to the court by former US President Donald Trump, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Connie Barrett. Trump has fought reform for years and has publicly expressed his hope that the Supreme Court will overturn it.

Trump’s successor, Democrat Joe Biden, welcomed the court’s decision. “Great victory for the American people,” the US president wrote on Twitter on Thursday. Millions of people depend on the regulations for their health insurance coverage.

Obamacare has allowed nearly 20 million Americans to get new health insurance, while in some cases taxes have gone up. Another key point is that people can no longer be denied insurance due to previous illnesses.