[20200716]LSB10519_连锁反应：评估最高法院风险走廊裁决的影响.pdf

CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i Ripple Effects: Assessing Impacts of the Supreme Courts Risk Corridors Decision July 16, 2020 Although most eyes tracking Affordable Care Act (ACA) litigation may be drawn to California v. Texas during the Supreme Courts upcoming term, the Court handed down an ACA decision this past term that may have numerous ripple effects in other ACA cases and programs. Specifically, in Maine Community Health Options v. United States, the Court considered whether the United States is obligated, under the temporary Risk Corridors Program, to make payments to health insurance providers who offered coverage at a loss in the ACAs individual and small group markets. Though the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) calculated insurer payments for the 2014, 2015, and 2016 program years, HHS paid a fraction of that amount. Limitations in HHSs annual appropriations acts prevented use of annually appropriated funds to make payment in full. Despite this lack of available appropriations, the Court held that the United States incurred obligations to insurers under the Risk Corridors statute for which insu