WEBVTT - Bloomberg Law Brief: Obamacare Faces Uncertain Future (Audio)

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<v Speaker 1>Now it's time for our daily Bloomberg Lab Brief, exploring

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<v Speaker 1>legal issues in the news. And Today, Bloomberg Lahoe student

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<v Speaker 1>Grasso and Greg Sture discussed an appeals court battle over

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<v Speaker 1>the constitutionality of Obamacare that's been suspended until after the inauguration.

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<v Speaker 1>An emergency motion has been filed in the case on

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<v Speaker 1>behalf of two Obamacare beneficiaries who say that suspending this

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<v Speaker 1>suit could be devastating to their healthcare coverage. They seek

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<v Speaker 1>with a big luck a professor at Yale University Law School,

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<v Speaker 1>what is it that the House Republicans set in their

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<v Speaker 1>lawsuit that the Obama administration was doing wrong? Okay, great? So?

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<v Speaker 1>House versus Burwell is a challenge to wort of call

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<v Speaker 1>the cost sharing reductions provided under the Affordable Care Act.

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<v Speaker 1>Those are payments to insurers that in turns translate to

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<v Speaker 1>UM lower deductibles and co pays UH for individual Americans

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<v Speaker 1>who have insurance policies and a couple of years ago,

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<v Speaker 1>the House filed the lawsuit saying that the funds were

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<v Speaker 1>not properly appropriated in the statute for the Obama administration

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<v Speaker 1>to actually be paying those cost sharing reduction statute. The

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<v Speaker 1>case is about on the small level. But it's important

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<v Speaker 1>to also understand that the case is also about a

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<v Speaker 1>huge legal principle that has nothing to do with the

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<v Speaker 1>Affordable Care Act, and that's the ability of one House

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<v Speaker 1>of Congress to sue the president for his implementation of

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<v Speaker 1>the law. House versus Burwell as an unprecedented victory for

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<v Speaker 1>the House of Representatives on that point. There's never been

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<v Speaker 1>a successful challenge, UM on that point. Before, just talk

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<v Speaker 1>about what the incoming Trump administration's options might be, assuming

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<v Speaker 1>that the interveneers don't don't complicate their plans. Given that

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<v Speaker 1>the President elect to said he wants to appeal Obamacare,

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<v Speaker 1>what might he and what could he do with this lawsuit? Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean he's in a really difficult position. If ivery time,

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<v Speaker 1>I might actually be rooting for the interveners to win. Uh.

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<v Speaker 1>And this is why, UM, it's he does nothing. Let's

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<v Speaker 1>say he comes in, he says, Okay, we're going to

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<v Speaker 1>drop the appeal. What happens then it means that the

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<v Speaker 1>House wins. It means the cost sharing payments stop. It

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<v Speaker 1>means the insurers can't afford to be on the exchanges anymore,

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<v Speaker 1>and they pull out, and you get insurance market chaos.

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<v Speaker 1>Right now. You may be saying, Okay, he's going to

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<v Speaker 1>repeal the Affordable Care Act, but he's not. He's repealing underlaying.

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<v Speaker 1>So the Affordable Care Act is still going to be

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<v Speaker 1>operational for the next four years maybe um, which means

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<v Speaker 1>but it won't be able to function. That's a big luck.

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<v Speaker 1>A professor at Yale University Law School, speaking with Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 1>Law host during Grosso and Greg sture, You're gonna send

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<v Speaker 1>a Bloomberg Law weekdays at one pm Wall Street Time

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<v Speaker 1>here on Bloomberg Radio. Among the top legal stories from

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Law, federal judge has slashed a billion dollar verdict

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<v Speaker 1>against Johnson and Johnson over artificial hips. The judge rule

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<v Speaker 1>that a jury's peinot of damage award to six patients

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<v Speaker 1>was excessive. That wipes out almost five hundred million dollars

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<v Speaker 1>Johnson and Johnson would have had to pay for the

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<v Speaker 1>faulty implets. The wife of a convicted inside a trader

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<v Speaker 1>has talked up a rare win over the FBI. The

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<v Speaker 1>agency agreed to settle a lawsuit that claimed agents eas

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<v Speaker 1>dropped on her amid conversations with her husband. The wife

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<v Speaker 1>of former Gallean Group trader Craig Drumal had sued sixteen

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<v Speaker 1>FBI agents, saying they wrongly intercepted more than a hundred

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<v Speaker 1>eighty private calls. In terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

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<v Speaker 1>And that's this morning's Bloomberg Law Brief. You can find

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<v Speaker 1>more legal news at Bloomberg law dot com and Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 1>BNA dot com. Attorneys will find exceptional legal research and

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<v Speaker 1>business development tools there as well. Visit Bloomberg law dot

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<v Speaker 1>com and Bloomberg BNA dot com for more information.