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handle is hein.crs/govedsl0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional                                             ______
*.Research Service
~~~ ~~Informing the egislative debate since 1914___________________
Supreme Court Dismisses Challenge to the
Affordable Care Act in California v. Texas
Updated June 21, 2021
On June 17, 2021, the Supreme Court issued its decision in California v. Texas, one of the most closely
watched cases of this term. At stake in California was the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act's (ACA's) requirement for individuals to maintain health insurance (known as the
individual mandate) and the continued validity of the remainder of the comprehensive Act. In a 7-2
decision, the Court dismissed the lawsuit on the grounds that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue. The
Court did not reach the merits of the challenge, thereby leaving the ACA intact. This Sidebar provides
background on the California case, examines the Court's decision, and concludes with selected legal
considerations for Congress.
Background
Enacted in 2010, one of the ACA's primary goals was to increase the number and share of Americans
who are insured. In addition to providing income-based subsidies to facilitate the purchase of health
insurance and increasing the scope of Medicaid coverage, the ACA, as originally enacted, also imposed
financial penalties on large employers that did not offer coverage to their employees and on certain
individuals who did not purchase or enroll in such coverage. This latter provision, commonly referred to
as the individual mandate, required certain individuals to maintain minimum levels of health insurance
and imposed financial penalties enforced as a tax on those who failed to comply. In addition, the ACA
included numerous other provisions that addressed a wide array of issues, ranging from health care
workforce promotion to improving access to innovative medical therapies.
Referenced by some commentators as the most challenged statute in American history, the ACA was
passed after a contentious legislative process and became the subject of numerous legal challenges soon
after its enactment. Many of the early constitutional challenges to the ACA were put to rest by the
Supreme Court's 2012 decision in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (NFIB), a
major ruling on the individual mandate and other key provisions of the Act. In NFIB, Chief Justice John
Roberts, writing for the Court's majority, concluded that the individual mandate could reasonably be
characterized as a valid exercise of Congress's power to levy taxes, given that the penalty possessed the
essential feature of any tax: it produces at least some revenue for the Government. Because the
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
LSB10610
CRS Legal Sidebar
Prepared for Members and
Committees of Congress

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