Warner on the Supreme Court Upholding the Affordable Care Act

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following after the Supreme Court of the United States ruled 7-2 to uphold the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in Texas v. United States, which could have sabotaged protections for more than 3 million Virginians living with a preexisting condition such as COVID-19, diabetes, asthma, or cancer, and potentially exposing them to annual or lifetime caps on coverage or denials for the care they need:

“Nearly 700,000 Virginians have gained health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act, and many more Americans now have health care coverage today than at any point in history because of it. Today, the Supreme Court has once again ruled that the Affordable Care Act will remain law of the land, but the important work in Congress isn’t over. Now we must continue to improve and build upon the success of the Affordable Care Act in a way that expands health care coverage to more Americans and work to further reduce health care costs.”

In the Senate, Sen. Warner has sponsored several bills to block the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine the ACA and protect people with preexisting conditions. Earlier this year, Sen. Warner introduced legislation to undo a Trump-era rule that dismantled health care coverage for Americans with preexisting conditions. In 2019, Sen. Warner also led the entire Senate Democratic Caucus in forcing an up-or-down vote on overturning this rule that flooded the health care market with “junk” health care plans, which are often advertised in low-income communities or communities of color. That vote was defeated as a result of Republican opposition, jeopardizing protections for millions of Americans with preexisting conditions.