Reactions to the Supreme Court's decision on the Affordable Care Act
In support of the decision
Maine Democratic Party Chairman Ben Grant: "This is a big win for the American people. By upholding Obamacare, the Supreme Court ensured that hard-working, middle class families will get the security they deserve and protection they need from the worst of insurance company abuses. We are already seeing the positive results of Obamacare right here in Maine. Our seniors are paying less for prescription drugs and getting free preventative care. And young adults in Maine, who would ordinarily be uninsured or struggling to pay for health insurance costs, are now fully covered on their family's plan until they are 26 years old."
U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud: "I am pleased that the Supreme Court's ruling has provided the certainty Congress and the American people need on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. While I have always said it is not a perfect law, the Affordable Care Act is a huge step forward in providing affordable access to health care for Mainers," said Michaud. "Now that this decision is behind us, I hope we can roll up our sleeves and concentrate on rebuilding our economy and putting Mainers back to work."
U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree: "The Court made the right decision in preserving the basic consumer protections in the health care reform law—like letting young people stay on their parents' policies or preventing insurance companies from cancelling your coverage when you get sick. The court did the right thing by ruling in favor of consumers instead of siding with the big insurance companies."
In opposition to the decision
Gov. Paul LePage: "Washington DC now has the power to dictate how we, as Americans, live our lives. This is a massive overreach by the federal government, and is infringing upon the individual choices that we, as Americans, have in pursuing our own American Dream.
"This decision has verified what President Obama has refused to admit all along, which is to say this law is an enormous tax on the American people. The federal government can force you to do or buy anything, as long as they call it a 'tax.' This massive tax hike will only destroy the American economy as it forces us over the financial cliff.
"This decision erodes the freedoms which made the United States the greatest country on Earth. It is a sad day, and it is now up to the American people to demand full repeal of Obamacare. The Washington DC elites cannot and should not run our lives."
Maine Senate President Kevin Raye: "Today's Supreme Court ruling means it is up to the voters to elect a Congress and a President who will repeal a flawed and unworkable 2,700 page law rammed through with the kind of heavy-handed partisanship that disgusts the American people and has left Washington broken and dysfunctional. It is now clear that, if the law stands, it entails an unprecedented coercive new tax on the American people. Congress has a responsibility to start over and work together to enact true bipartisan health care reform that will give working families more choice and flexibility and help reduce the cost of health insurance without exploding the deficit, burdening struggling small businesses and destroying American jobs."
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins: "There can be no question, however, that our nation's health care system requires substantial reform. A clean decision by the Court to overturn this law would have paved the way for Congress to start over in a bipartisan fashion, as we should have from the start, to draft a health care bill that achieves the consensus goals of improving access and quality, providing more choice, containing health care costs, and making health care coverage more affordable for all Americans."
U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe: "Regrettably, today's Supreme Court decision was a victory for a massive legislative overreach, broad and expansive government, and its power to tax – and in this instance, to impose an onerous new tax for Americans on a product which the health care law now requires them to purchase, regardless of cost of the plans which has yet to be determined. Indeed, the Court accurately describes the individual mandate as a tax, which Americans can ill afford especially at this time of continued economic peril. This law represents an imposition of additional burdensome costs not only on individuals, but on our federal government – far beyond the original projections.
National Federation of Independent Business State Director David Clough: "The tragedy in this ruling is that Maine residents are now at the mercy of politicians from other states and bureaucrats in Washington whose decisions won't be based on what is best for Maine. Small businesses here will be overwhelmed by mandates, taxes and burdens imposed on them by people whom we cannot as easily hold accountable."
Neither for nor against decision
Steven Michaud, Maine Hospital Association: "The Affordable Care Act (ACA) presents both challenges and opportunities for hospitals and the health care sector in Maine. The challenges involve significant reductions in Medicare reimbursement. Those cuts, the phase-in of which has already begun, will reduce hospital revenues by $900 million during this decade.
The corresponding opportunities associated with those cuts include providing uninsured individuals a greater opportunity to be covered through either Medicaid or the private commercial market with the assistance of government subsidies.
The ACA also has opportunities for improvement of the health care system through payment reform ideas like 'value-based purchasing' in Medicare, which rewards high quality states like Maine, and Accountable Care Organizations, which seek to lower costs through better care management and coordination...
While each side has its merits, now that the law has been upheld, MHA hopes that state leaders will work to ensure that the law is implemented in ways that fully benefit Maine citizens."
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