In new ruling, federal district court judge Reed O’Connor strikes down ACA’s preventive coverage mandate, threatening access to critical, lifesaving services for patients across America
Lawsuit was championed by far-right Republican organization founded by Stephen Miller
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), issued the following statement on the federal court ruling in Texas striking down the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that insurers cover essential preventive care services, like cancer and cholesterol screenings, HIV prevention, STI testing, and much more.
“This is a downright dangerous decision that, if left to stand, will deny patients in every part of our country the ability to get the basic health care services they count on—we’re talking about everything from cancer and cholesterol screenings to STI testing, HIV prevention drugs, and more.
“This decision should enrage every American.
“More than a decade after we passed the ACA, Republican interests are still working around the clock to roll back critical protections for patients—and this decision is just the latest in their slew of attacks on Americans’ ability to simply get the health care they need.
“Shredding the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that insurers cover basic preventative care services at no extra cost will deny patients across our country critical, lifesaving services they need—and it will particularly hurt patients with the tightest budgets, as well as LGBTQ+ patients who count on medications like PrEP to keep them healthy and safe.
“The Affordable Care Act’s protections have repeatedly been upheld in the face of nonstop attacks—and yet Republicans keep fighting to deny patients these deeply popular and necessary protections.
“But make no mistake: these rights should not even be in question. Patients should be able to make their own health care decisions—not their employers, not their insurers, and certainly not Republican interests. Every American’s right to access free preventive care is guaranteed under the ACA. So let’s be clear: as Republicans work to rip your health care away, Democrats will keep fighting to protect it—the difference could not be more clear. I am not new to this fight, and I have no intention of backing down now.”
Senator Murray has helped lead the fight in Congress to defend the Affordable Care Act in the face of Republicans’ nonstop attacks on the law and its vital protections for patients. As Chair of the Senate HELP Committee, she helped marshal the votes needed to protect the law as Republicans repeatedly sought to repeal it, consistently pushed back against administrative attempts under the last president to weaken its protections, and has called out egregious attempts like this one to strike down the law’s core protections for patients. Last September, she warned of the grave consequences this lawsuit could have for patients.
The Affordable Care Act requires private health insurance plans to cover in-network preventive services at no cost to patients. Private plans are required to cover all preventive services recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force with an “A” or “B” rating. A full list of those preventive services—which are implicated by the ruling today—is available here.
Thanks to the ACA coverage requirements, more than 150 million Americans with private insurance can access preventive services without cost-sharing.
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