Not on the List to Review for 2014 Term

The US Supreme Court has released the list of cases it will take up in the 2014 term, and the petition that challenges a key part of the Obamacare healthcare law is not on the list.

The next opportunity for the court to place the case of King v. Burwell, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 14-114 on the list is on November 10. It is expected that the case will have better odds of acceptance then.

The petition before the court was brought by opponents of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), and hinges on eight words in the original language of the act -- “enrolled through an Exchange established by the State.” That language was intended to give states an incentive to create their own health care marketplaces, called exchanges.

Sixteen states have implemented a state run health insurance exchange, while others make use of the federal government-run health insurance exchange. Still other states have elected to partner with another state or the federal government. Five million consumers in 34 states without their own exchanges are at issue.

Under the ACA, the Internal Revenue Service authorized subsidies in the form of tax credits, which were intended in the act to make the health care programs more accessible to lower-income consumers. In July, the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the credits.

It is still too soon to tell what the outcome of the appeal will be, but TaxingSubjects will report new developments as they occur.

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Sources: Supreme Court of the United States Granted and Noted List Cases For Argument In October Term 2014 at http://www.supremecourt.gov/orders/14grantednotedlist.pdf