Is Obamacare over?
No! At most, it is no longer valid in the Northern District of Texas. Last month, Judge Reed O’Connor, a district judge in Fort Worth, Texas, ruled that the Affordable Care Act’s “Individual Mandate,” requiring individual taxpayers to either purchase health plan coverage containing minimum essential benefits or pay a penalty tax, was “unconstitutional” and “invalid.” He issued a stay Dec. 30, 2018, “because many everyday Americans would otherwise face great uncertainty” during an appeal. His ruling granted the intervenor states’ request for: 1) final judgment based on his Dec. 14 decision; and 2) a stay of that judgment. The Dec. 30 ruling allows for an immediate appeal to the Fifth Circuit. It also means the ACA will remain in effect during the course of the appeal.
