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Up until Thursday morning, insurance agent Mark Thacker took calls from clients wondering what would happen to their health coverage if the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated a key part of the Affordable Care Act.

Today, Thacker’s clients can wonder no longer.

In the second landmark decision on the Affordable Care Act in the past three years, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to uphold federal subsidies provided to nearly 9 million patients nationwide. The decision in the case of King v. Burwell effectively closes off major legal challenges to the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.

Thacker’s Blue Cross Blue Shield of N.C. High Point office has signed up about 435 clients for coverage since the fall of 2013, when the first open enrollment period started. Several of those clients called Thacker’s office recently worried about losing their subsidies if the Supreme Court ruled against the federal government.

“Now everything should stay the same for the foreseeable future,” Thacker told The High Point Enterprise.

The Affordable Care Act ruling brought predictable reactions from the Piedmont Triad congressional delegation, with Republicans showing disappointment and Democrats offering praise.

“I was disheartened by the Supreme Court’s ruling on Obamacare. I disagree with the decision and will work to resolve the mess created by this top-down, unnatural approach to health care — let’s empower patients with choice, not burden them with mandates from Washington,” said Rep. Mark Walker, R-6th.

In his statement, Walker referenced complaints from constituents who have had their premiums skyrocket since the Affordable Care Act was implemented.

Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-5th, echoed similar concerns.

“For the past two years, my email inbox, mailbox and phone lines have been flooded with reports of cancelled health insurance plans, soaring premiums, increased deductibles and frustrated constituents trying to navigate the confusing Washington bureaucracy that is Obamacare. Despite its central promise, the Affordable Care Act has proved to be anything but affordable for many North Carolinians, and today’s Supreme Court decision doesn’t change that fact,” Foxx said.

But Rep. Alma Adams, D-12th, said the ruling will have long-term benefits for her constituents and other Americans desperate for health care coverage. And she referenced a painful, personal loss to make her point.

“Growing up, my family could not afford health insurance, and I will never forget the emergency room visits to get care for my sister, who suffered from sickle cell anemia. Although the disease took her life at 26, I can only imagine what life would have been like for her, if we had health insurance,” Adams said. “Today, this is a reality for millions of Americans who can now afford healthcare because of the benefits of ACA.”

Rep. David Price, D-4th, said he hopes the King v. Burwell ruling resolves the legal wrangling over Obamacare.

“I am glad that the Supreme Court has once again confirmed what we already knew – the Affordable Care Act stands on solid legal ground,” Price said. “We finally have the unfounded legal challenges behind us, and we can focus on continuing to effectively implement the law’s reforms and making progress toward ensuring access to healthcare for millions of previously-uninsured Americans.”

http://www.hpenews.com/news/x110775879/Obamacare-upheld-by-Supreme-Court