Add one more barrier to the logistical, financial, and political forces already making it
difficult for states to respond by setting up their own exchanges if the Supreme Court decides to strip subsidies from the federal exchange. A
handful of states have passed nullification amendments that could actually prohibit the establishment of exchanges.
Alabama, Arizona, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Wyoming have passed anti-Obamacare amendments, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. And more than 1 million people in those five states would lose tax credits if the high court rules against the Obama administration later this year, according to estimates from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
The state amendments, which the conservative advocacy group American Legislative Exchange Council helped to advance, don't say anything specific about establishing an exchange. But read between the lines, and the states could run into yet another round of Obamacare lawsuits if they try to sidestep the court's decision.
And if nothing else, the law's opponents have proven litigious.
Clearly the tort reform this country needs is limiting suits challenging healthcare law. You can bet there are state legislatures out there that haven't already passed these nullification amendments, but are now getting them ready to make sure that if the Supreme Court rules their way, their states can never set up an exchange.
Congress could respond to a potential court ruling against the law by passing a one-page amendment. It won't. It can't create any plan, any fix, any replacement that will make it through the gauntlet of the House Republicans. The White House's hands are tied, without an administrative fix. And the very fact that these various nullification amendments exist shows just how committed these states are to killing Obamacare.
If the Supreme Court moves forward to gut the law, it will not be fixed for millions of people. Period.