THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release June 28, 2012
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
ON THE SUPREME COURT RULING
ON THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
East Room
12:15 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon. Earlier
today, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable
Care Act -- the name of the health care reform we passed two years ago.
In doing so, they've reaffirmed a fundamental
principle that here in America -- in the wealthiest nation on Earth –
no illness or accident should lead to any family’s financial ruin.
I know there will be a lot
of discussion today about the politics of all this, about who won and
who lost. That’s how these things tend to be viewed here in
Washington. But that discussion completely misses the
point. Whatever the politics, today’s decision was a victory for
people all over this country whose lives will be more secure because of
this law and the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold it.
And because this law has a
direct impact on so many Americans, I want to take this opportunity to
talk about exactly what it means for you.
First, if you’re one of
the more than 250 million Americans who already have health insurance,
you will keep your health insurance -- this law will only make it more
secure and more affordable. Insurance companies
can no longer impose lifetime limits on the amount of care you
receive. They can no longer discriminate against children with
preexisting conditions. They can no longer drop your coverage if you
get sick. They can no longer jack up your premiums without
reason. They are required to provide free preventive care like
check-ups and mammograms -- a provision that's already helped 54 million
Americans with private insurance. And by this August, nearly 13
million of you will receive a rebate from your insurance
company because it spent too much on things like administrative costs
and CEO bonuses, and not enough on your health care.
There’s more. Because of
the Affordable Care Act, young adults under the age of 26 are able to
stay on their parent's health care plans -- a provision that's already
helped 6 million young Americans. And because
of the Affordable Care Act, seniors receive a discount on their
prescription drugs -- a discount that's already saved more than 5
million seniors on Medicare about $600 each.
All of this is happening
because of the Affordable Care Act. These provisions provide
common-sense protections for middle class families, and they enjoy broad
popular support. And thanks to today’s decision, all
of these benefits and protections will continue for Americans who
already have health insurance.
Now, if you’re one of the
30 million Americans who don’t yet have health insurance, starting in
2014 this law will offer you an array of quality, affordable, private
health insurance plans to choose from. Each
state will take the lead in designing their own menu of options, and if
states can come up with even better ways of covering more people at the
same quality and cost, this law allows them to do that, too. And I’ve
asked Congress to help speed up that process,
and give states this flexibility in year one.
Once states set up these
health insurance marketplaces, known as exchanges, insurance companies
will no longer be able to discriminate against any American with a
preexisting health condition. They won’t be able
to charge you more just because you’re a woman. They won’t be able to
bill you into bankruptcy. If you’re sick, you’ll finally have the same
chance to get quality, affordable health care as everyone else. And if
you can’t afford the premiums, you'll receive
a credit that helps pay for it.
Today, the Supreme Court
also upheld the principle that people who can afford health insurance
should take the responsibility to buy health insurance. This is
important for two reasons.
First, when uninsured
people who can afford coverage get sick, and show up at the emergency
room for care, the rest of us end up paying for their care in the form
of higher premiums.
And second, if you ask
insurance companies to cover people with preexisting conditions, but
don’t require people who can afford it to buy their own insurance, some
folks might wait until they’re sick to buy the
care they need -- which would also drive up everybody else’s premiums.
That’s why, even though I
knew it wouldn’t be politically popular, and resisted the idea when I
ran for this office, we ultimately included a provision in the
Affordable Care Act that people who can afford to buy
health insurance should take the responsibility to do so. In fact,
this idea has enjoyed support from members of both parties, including
the current Republican nominee for President.
Still, I know the debate
over this law has been divisive. I respect the very real concerns that
millions of Americans have shared. And I know a lot of coverage through
this health care debate has focused on what
it means politically.
Well, it should be pretty
clear by now that I didn’t do this because it was good politics. I did
it because I believed it was good for the country. I did it because I
believed it was good for the American people.
There’s a framed letter
that hangs in my office right now. It was sent to me during the health
care debate by a woman named Natoma Canfield. For years and years,
Natoma did everything right. She bought health
insurance. She paid her premiums on time. But 18 years ago, Natoma
was diagnosed with cancer. And even though she’d been cancer-free for
more than a decade, her insurance company kept jacking up her rates,
year after year. And despite her desire to keep
her coverage -- despite her fears that she would get sick again -- she
had to surrender her health insurance, and was forced to hang her
fortunes on chance.
I carried Natoma’s story
with me every day of the fight to pass this law. It reminded me of all
the Americans, all across the country, who have had to worry not only
about getting sick, but about the cost of getting
well.
Natoma is well today. And
because of this law, there are other Americans -- other sons and
daughters, brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers -- who will not
have to hang their fortunes on chance. These are
the Americans for whom we passed this law.
The highest Court in the
land has now spoken. We will continue to implement this law. And we'll
work together to improve on it where we can. But what we won’t do --
what the country can’t afford to do -- is refight
the political battles of two years ago, or go back to the way things
were.
With today’s announcement,
it’s time for us to move forward -- to implement and, where necessary,
improve on this law. And now is the time to keep our focus on the most
urgent challenge of our time: putting people
back to work, paying down our debt, and building an economy where
people can have confidence that if they work hard, they can get ahead.
But today, I’m as
confident as ever that when we look back five years from now, or 10
years from now, or 20 years from now, we’ll be better off because we had
the courage to pass this law and keep moving forward.
Thank you. God bless you, and God bless America.
