Affordable Care Act Gets OK From High Court

The Affordable Care Act is now officially the law of the land after the Supreme Court ruled that the disputed individual mandate was constitutional.

Reaction from within and outside the retail industry — aside from shock, as many expected the conservative Court to rule against the legislation — was mixed, with most making pronouncements that the law was flawed and needed some fixing.

What follows are excerpts of statements issued by health and retail associations after the ruling was announced:

"The health reform law upheld by the Supreme Court simplifies administrative burdens, including streamlining insurance claims, so physicians and their staff can spend more time with patients and less time on paperwork. It protects those in the Medicare ‘donut hole,’ including the 5.1 million Medicare patients who saved significantly on prescription drugs in 2010 and 2011. These important changes have been made while maintaining our American system with both private and public insurers." – Jeremy A. Lazarus, MD, President, American Medical Association

"Although the Court upheld the law’s constitutionality, many problems remain: it penalizes employers too much; it doesn’t do enough to reduce the cost of health care; and it is unreasonably complicated and difficult to implement and administer." – Matthew Shay, President and CEO of the National Retail Federation

"RILA continues to urge the Administration to protect retailers’ ability to offer quality, affordable coverage that fits the unique needs of their workforce and not to undermine the flexible, voluntary system that provides coverage to millions of employees and their families." – Sandy Kennedy, President of the Retail Industry Leaders Association

"Today’s historic decision lifts a heavy burden from millions of Americans who need access to health coverage. … The decision means that hospitals now have much-needed clarity to continue on their path toward transformation." – Rich Umbdenstock President and CEO American Hospital Association

"NACDS will continue to advance pro-patient, pro-pharmacy policies that improve health and reduce costs. These objectives will remain top priorities following today’s Supreme Court decision." – Steven C. Anderson, IOM, CAE, President and CEO, National Association of Chain Drug Stores

"Today’s decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold the constitutionality of the individual mandate, a key provision of the Affordable Care Act, makes the future more certain for employers. … N.G.A. will redouble its efforts to minimize the impact and burdens on independent retail grocers by continuing to work closely with fellow members of the Employers for Flexibility in Healthcare Coalition to educate the administration on the important need for maximum flexibility in regulatory requirements." – Peter Larkin, President and CEO of the National Grocers Association

"There are two provisions in PPACA that specifically impact the grocery industry: a restaurant menu labeling requirement that was incorporated into the legislation just prior to its passage followed by a proposed rule from FDA that could expand to supermarkets the regulations intended for restaurants; and a requirement that customers present a doctor’s prescription before being allowed to use an FSA debit card to purchase over-the-counter medicines at their local food stores, while continuing to allow the use of FSA debit cards to purchase eligible items that are not medicines." – Food Marketing Institute

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Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions: What do you see as the pros and cons of the Affordable Care Act for retailers, both as employers and as businesses catering to various health needs of consumers? How would you advise industry leaders going forward to seek needed changes to the legislation without eliminating many of the provisions strongly supported by the American public?

Poll

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David Livingston
David Livingston
11 years ago

The big con is that the government is involved, so you know it’s going to cost everyone more when they stick their nose in it. To me, health care is cheap. To have access to the best health care in the world and worst case scenario is I’m only out about $15,000 a year. I’ll take that all day long.

Health care is not expensive, it’s cheap, but too many people want it for free and want others to pay for it. It seems to be cheap in India and Mexico; maybe we should follow their model. Many fear that if everyone has health insurance, we will be sitting in waiting rooms all day with poor people. I kind of like showing up to an empty waiting room and being seen right away. Not so sure I want to give that up.

My doctor told me she no longer accepts patients with government health insurance because they are not profitable. That means if I have government insurance, I can’t see the doctor I want. My advice to government leaders is to drop all of this and move on.

Paul Evanko
Paul Evanko
11 years ago

This is a massive overeach by the federal government. It is bad enough that you have to go on Medicare at age 65 unless you keep working. Now add more taxes on interst, dividends, rental income, royalties and capital gains to fund it and you have a real mess for those who would like to retire with some control over their income and health insurance.

David Biernbaum
David Biernbaum
11 years ago

At this point in time, there are still many more questions than answers. Keep in mind that the Supreme Court has made a legal decision, however, the outcome of the November elections might still change the ultimate outcome, if by chance the Republicans win big, and overturn. Big if. But if we are to assume that Obamacare is here to stay, I think the only certainty is that we are entering into an era of major change, lots of perplexity, maybe some chaos, and more polarization with regards to how health care should be approached and implemented by employers. And there will be loop holes, preferences to pay penalties more than to pay for healthcare, awkwardness, etc. Spaghetti junction, here we come!

Gene Hoffman
Gene Hoffman
11 years ago

There are many preferred features in the “Affordable Care Act” but with up to 30 million more people now to be medically-covered by too few primary-care doctors, the hospitals will be jammed; patients with preexisting conditions will be protected; drug manufacturers will be pressured on price; many people will be forced to buy health insurance for the first time or be taxed; and employers will re-calculate the cost of offering or maintaining coverage for employees or be fined.

Somewhere in this dichotomy lies the political promise of low health care costs for America. It’s an overly complex situation. So let’s wait for the CBO to determine what all this means to each strata of the population.

The issue is too strident and emotional right now to give sound advice since too few of us really know what still might be hidden with the 2000+ pages on the Act. All we can be sure of at the moment is that there is uncertainty and anxiety in the hearts and minds of many retailers.

Dennis Serbu
Dennis Serbu
11 years ago

Just the sheer size of the bill threatens any chance of success. How can we administer something we have no chance of understanding? Much like SOX, this legislation will add incremental administrative cost while doing little to fix the underlying problem. The legislation needs to be torn apart and simplified in terms of making it cost effective. You can’t fix it if you don’t understand it.

And to echo the sentiments of other writers, the government is not the best model to follow for administrative efficiency. We would be better served to let the market devise a solution while removing legal obstacles to competition and innovation.

Herb Sorensen, Ph.D.
Herb Sorensen, Ph.D.
11 years ago

There is an appeal from the Supreme Court, and that is going directly to the population for a vote, and that will essentially happen in November, with the ACA probably being a pivotal issue in the presidential election — the largest middle class tax increase in history, etc. The consistent unpopularity of the act from when it was rammed through the legislature on a strictly partisan basis, right up to today, means continuing uncertainty as to the final resolution.

Uncertainty is NEVER helpful to business planning, encouraging caution rather than confidence.

Kai Clarke
Kai Clarke
11 years ago

This is a key government program that should have been in place a long time ago. Businesses simply have to account for the “tax” that this costs and move forward. Everyone will be taxed the same. The key here is that it opens up venues for more competitors to enter the market to provide services under this program’s umbrellas and to decrease the incredible costs of health care in the USA.

Tony Orlando
Tony Orlando
11 years ago

First the good part.. Keeping kids on till age 26 seems reasonable, since it takes most kids 4-6 years to graduate from college, and another 2 years to find a good job. Buying insurance across state lines can be good, if the free market were to implement this.

Now the bad part: Everything else. I got 2 calls yesterday after the announcement came down, and these two store owners were beyond mad. The cost of paying for health care for 50 or more employees in any business is going to be beyond the reach of almost all retailers. The cost will eat up most if not all of their profits, especially in the supermarket industry. The cost WILL NOT go down, as they claim. Also the so called mandate will never be enforced, as the entitlement class will simply not pay a dime for this.

My brother who is a surgeon is very worried about the younger doctors coming into the medical business as they graduate from med school. How much money can they actually make, as the payment for their services will be drastically cut, and controlled by some panel in DC.

This is just the beginning of what is to come, and the new taxes, and rules will be burdensome for all hard working Americans. This is a sad day for the freedoms we cherish as Americans, and the future is now cloudier than ever before. Can you name one start-up company that wants to invest in these crazy times? Unemployment is sure to go up from this deal, as employers will need to shed more payroll to stay afloat. Happy 4th of July to all!

George Anderson
George Anderson
11 years ago

Much of the challenge to finding answers to the real healthcare delivery and funding crises that our country faces can be seen in the demagoguery surrounding the subject.

From the start there has been baseless name-calling around the issue. Some conservative leaders (Gingrich, Hatch, Romney, etc.) who supported strikingly similar legislation in the 1990s and early 2000s have labeled current backers as socialists, tax and spenders, etc. That might be great for whipping up the political base for elections, but it’s not much help when it comes to finding solutions. Demeaning language, I should make clear, is not relegated to one side of the Congressional aisle.

As Gene Hoffman correctly points out, there are many arguing over what the law will mean while many questions remain on the details. Here again, there remains an opening for constructive negotiations if the various parties, public and private, bring open minds to talks. I’m encouraged by a number of the association responses that suggested a willingness to work with the Administration and Congress in this regard.

Ed Rosenbaum
Ed Rosenbaum
11 years ago

I was particularly interested in the political side of this. And to listen to the Republican hierarchy put their spin on it was amusing. I am sure the decision caught many politicos off guard.

Gordon Arnold
Gordon Arnold
11 years ago

I am not worried about the pros or cons of this new and exciting burden. I am looking at the government’s track record with social security and medicare as they play out or rather run out of money. This is another real life nightmare of epic proportion which will waste trillions of dollars. Or at least that is the track record of what the government has been able to do so far.

Craig Sundstrom
Craig Sundstrom
11 years ago

Why think about it? Certainly the skies will rain destruction and the world will end … or not.

Retail will be on a level playing field (more or less, and unlike many industries where outsourcing to low-cost counties is an obvious issue); ultimately competent retailers will find a way to deal with it — maybe even embrace it — and the less able ones will sell, retire or go out of business. If it means waiting rooms have more people in them now, so that ERs — and maybe morgues — have fewer in them tomorrow, so be it. (Maybe David can use his new-found free time to visit JCPenney.)

Cathy Hotka
Cathy Hotka
11 years ago

The hand-wringing by these associations is laughable. Years from now, I doubt we’ll want to go back to the days when people who take a prescription get booted from their health insurance plan, and four-year-olds with serious health issues can use up their “lifetime benefits.”