Statement on federal court ruling on the Affordable Care Act

RALEIGH — Progress NC, the NC Justice Center, and partner organizations released the following statement on Thursday in response to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on Texas v. United States regarding the Affordable Care Act:

Wednesday’s Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling on the Texas v. United States decision means that millions of North Carolinians with pre-existing health conditions will continue to live in uncertainty as the critical question of whether or not the entire ACA is severable from the individual mandate remains unanswered. 

The fate of the law and health coverage for millions of North Carolinians was punted back into the hands of the district court in the northern district of Texas in a game of political football. 

For now, nothing changes for patients in our state: half a million North Carolinians can continue to benefit from coverage through HealthCare.gov, people with pre-existing conditions in our state are still protected, and critical patient protections remain intact. 

North Carolinians with pre-existing conditions will not forget that the Trump administration continues to undermine the Affordable Care Act, the very law that protects them from insurance discrimination and has led to hundreds of thousands of our residents gaining coverage. 

Fortunately, our state Attorney General Josh Stein joined a coalition of state Attorneys General to defend critical patient protections in court.

This ruling does not affect our state’s ability to expand Medicaid. We look to the General Assembly to finally close the coverage gap and provide lifesaving care for more than 500,000 North Carolinians.