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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 11, 2012)
Page 6 lu ly ll.2 0 1 2 Life-Altering Access to Health Care Chief Justice elevates stature of the court by M arc H. M orial The Supreme Court ruling to uphold the Af fordable Care Act repre sents life-altering access to health care for millions of Americans, particularly African Americans who have been twice as likely to lack health insur ance. Health Insurance can mean the difference between life and death, and even more often it can mean the difference between financial stabil ity and ruin. Health care costs are responsible for a majority of per sonal bankruptcies in the United States. The Supreme Court’s decision affirmed that the National Urban League mission, shared by millions of Americans, to build a fairer health care system is not only appropriate and pro-family, but constitutionally valid. While the Court made the right call, it was once again a narrow 5-4 decision, with the deciding vote surpris ingly cast by Chief Justice John G. Roberts. It is no secret that in 2005 the Na tional Urban League sided with then, Senator Obama in oppos ing Roberts’ nomination as Chief Justice. Roberts came to the nomination process as a staunch conservative, who had been an outspoken oppo nent of Affirmative Action, which he had often referred to as “quo tas.” He had also spoken out against the “effects test’ in voting rights enforcement, saying that voting rights violations “should not be made too easy to prove.” Up until last month, there was no indication that Roberts would be the only conservative Suprem e Court Justice to side with the four liberals on the court in supporting the most important legislative break through on health care in a genera tion. a rigid liberal/conservative divide. Contrast this statesmanlike lead ership with the comments of con servative Justice Antonin Scalia, who at various times leading up to the decision had trivialized this im portant national debate. Scalia had said it was “unrealistic” to expect the Justices to read the entire bill, joking that the Eighth Amendment protected them from “cruel and un usual punishment.” And he had objected to the individual mandate with a quip that “You can’t make people buy broccoli.” These com ments were unworthy of the seri ousness of the debate and unbe coming of a Supreme Court Justice. But thanks to Justice Roberts, com mon sense and the rule of law pre vailed. Roberts’ principled decision el The court’s ruling means that 31 evated the stature of the Court by million more Americans have ac refusing to have it defined as a cess to health insurance and senior strictly partisan institution, with citizens will pay less for life-saving justices reliably casting votes along medications. It means that invest Roberts’ principled decision elevated the stature o f the Court by refusing to have it defined as a strictly partisan institution.^ RHHMMMBM ments in preventive health screen ings and community prevention ef forts like those operated by Urban League affiliates across the country will continue to move forward. But the fight is not over. Justice Roberts concluded his majority opinion by saying, "The Framers created a Federal Govern ment of limited powers and assigned to this court the duty of enforcing those limits. The court does so to day. But the court does not express any opinion on the wisdom of the Affordable Care Act. Under the Constitution, that judgment is re served to the people." The Roberts Court has affirmed the constitutionality of the Afford able Care Act. It is now up to the political process and the court of public opinion to resolve its final fate. Marc H. Morial is president and chief executive officer o f the Na tional Urban League. MMMMM Score Another Victory for Corporations Health care ruling won’t heal our ailing system health care reform law. But we're As a p h y si still getting p artisan talking cian, I find it points instead of an honest re very odd that the view of the changes that are in debate over the store. This will likely worsen as Affordable Care we get closer to Election Day. A ct h as f o The new law is based on con cused on the af cepts developed by the H eri fect the law will tage Foundation, a conserva h a v e on the tive think tank. Republican presi presidential election rather than dential candidate M itt Romney the impact it will have on patients, passed a very sim ilar law for his health professionals, and health state when he was the governor of outcom es. M assachusetts. So w hile m ost The Suprem e Court case rein D em ocrats are celebrating the v igorated the debate over the Suprem e Court decision to up O bam a a d m in istra tio n 's 2010 hold the A ffordable Care Act, and by D r . M argaret F lowers THE LAW OFFICES OF Patrick John Sweeney, P.C. Patrick John Sweeney Attorney at Law 1549 SE Ladd Portland, Oregon Portland: Hillsoboro: Facsimile: Email: (503) 244-2080 (503) 244-2081 (503) 244-2084 Sweeney@PDXLawyer.com pay that tab, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The Romney is saying he'd repeal it, insurance m andate and these sub consider this: had a Republican sidies will create corporate w el passed this federal law, we would fare on steroids. have the opposite situation. W hat will the insurance com L et’s put politics aside and look panies do with all that m oney? at the law from a policy stand They'll hold onto as m uch as they point. The big winners of the Su can by denying and restricting preme Court decision are the co r paym ent for care. And they'll use porations who are profiting from those dollars to weaken regula the current health system — pri tions m eant to protect patients. vate health insurers, pharm aceu W hen national health care re tical com panies, and corporate- owned hospitals and medical prac a tices. The court has deem ed it consti tutional for the governm ent to re quire people to spend up to nine percent o f their incom e to p u r chase private insurance despite it being a defective product. People with insurance continue to face financial barriers to care. They delay and avoid necessary care because o f the cost o f co-pays and deductibles. W hen patients have a serious medical condition^ they risk finan cial ruin. Illness and soaring m edi form is fully implemented in 2019, cal costs are the greatest causes 26 million people will still lack cov o f b a n k ru p tc y in the U n ited erage. And health costs will con States, even though four out of tinue to rise because the law lacks five people experiencing m edical proven cost controls. bankruptcy have health insurance. W hile the law does include a Purchasing private insurance few positive provisions, it won't is going to be subsidized with stop the deterioration of our health taxpayer dollars. It will cost Uncle care system. W e'll continue to see Sam an estim ated half a trillion unnecessary suffering and pre dollars between 2014 and 2019 to ventable death. T his is unaccept- able when we are already spend ing nearly tw ice as m uch per per son on care each year as other industrialized nations with uni versal health system s and much better health outcom es. The truth is that we can solve our health care crisis. The fastest way to accomplish this is to drop just two words from the Medicare Act — "over 65" — and immediately ex pand Medicare to every person. That would create a system that's about When patients have a serious medical condition, they risk financial ruin. Illness and soaring medical costs are the greatest causes o f bankruptcy in the United States, even though four out o f five people experiencing medical bankruptcy have health insurance. J health care, not corporate profits. A universal Medicare system would control costs and improve the qual ity of patient care. Let's dem and M edicare for all now. The longer we wait, the more people, who will suffer and die needlessly. Dr. Margaret Flowers is a p e diatrician from Baltimore and co director o f Its Our Economy.
