Obamacare mandate for preventive care is restored, for now

“Lawyers reached a deal on Monday to keep the Affordable Care Act’s mandate requiring health plans to cover preventive care at no cost to patients,” Sarah Kliff writes over at The New York Times. “A district court in Texas ruled in March that part of the requirement was unconstitutional. The decision took effect immediately, meaning insurers no longer had to cover certain types of preventive care, including a pill to prevent the spread of H.I.V. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily stayed the ruling last month, bringing the health law’s provision back into effect. The appeals court also asked the two parties — a group of Texas residents and businesses challenging the law, and the Biden administration, which is defending it — to come to a compromise on how much of the mandate should be put on hold while it weighed its decision. The deal they reached leaves the provision almost fully intact, requiring a vast majority of health plans to continue providing preventive care at no charge. The agreement includes an exemption for the small businesses and individuals challenging the provision; these entities will be allowed to use a plan that does not cover all preventive services if they can find a health insurer who offers it. The appellate court, which is expected to rule on the preventive care mandate’s constitutionality later this year, still has to approve the lawyers’ agreement. Health policy experts describe the mandate as one of the most transformative policies of the health law, known as Obamacare, because it could prevent worsening disease and higher costs later on. It is also popular, with 62 percent of the public recently saying it was ‘very important’ that it stay in place. Before the Affordable Care Act’s passage, in March 2010, patients sometimes faced big bills for preventive care such as birth control or colonoscopies. Since the mandate took effect, studies have shown, more Americans have received blood pressure screenings, cholesterol screenings and flu vaccines.” Sarah Kliff, “Obamacare mandate for preventive care restored, for now,” The New York Times.