What the Supreme Court Ruling on Healthcare Law Will Mean for Texas Businesses

It’s all about the subsidies.

By Rhonda FanningJune 24, 2015 10:44 am

It could come within the next 24 hours, or we may be waiting a few more days. We’re talking about one of the most highly anticipated Supreme Court rulings of the year: whether to cut off tax credits that help millions of people in about three dozen states, including Texas, pay for health care under the Affordable Care Act.

If the tax credits are struck down, that wouldn’t be literally fatal to Obamacare, but experts say it could cause it to unravel.

David Chase is a Health Care Policy Director with the non-partisan group Small Business Majority, and he joins the Texas Standard to talk about what it could mean for everyday business.

On what small business owners want:

“They definitely have some concerns. They really felt that the status quo was really unacceptable and the Affordable Care Act has brought in some reforms that have finally brought them some relief. They really are not looking forward to the prospect of going back to the old days before the law was implemented.”

On who pays the cost if the tax credits are stuck down:

“The real cost would actually fall on the small business owner him or herself…The Affordable Care Act has…created this environment where you can quit your job, quit the 9-5, go out and start your own business. And have the security in knowing that you have access to health insurance! If [the subsidies] were to go away we’d lose that… About half a million people would no longer be able to start their own business because of this case.”

On small businesses providing health care:

“Everyone wants to have health coverage and the Affordable Care Act requires everyone to have that. We know many small businesses are able to offer coverage and that’s great, but many of them are simply not able to offer coverage. With these subsidies if you’re not able to offer coverage you know your employees have another opportunity to get coverage with these subsidies. If these subsidies go away, that’s a problem.”