The States Attacking Obamacare Have a Lot to Lose

Since the Affordable Care Act was signed into law, many red states have been trying to dismantle the legislation. Under Trump—who's taken measures to strike critical subsidies and nix the individual mandate—those efforts have been more brazen than ever. Last February, 20 states collaborated to challenge the constitutionality of the ACA in federal court. But almost a dozen of them will suffer if the law is repealed.

One of the key elements of the ACA was the protection of those with preexisting health conditions—which means that insurance companies couldn't penalize people who had a chronic disease or some kind of health ailment when they bought insurance. But nine of the 11 states with the highest rates of pre-existing conditions among adults under 65 signed onto the lawsuit, according to data from insurance companies and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

On today's episode, Tonic editor Susan Rinkunas spoke to Kaiser Health News reporter Harriet Rowan about the impact this lawsuit could have on people's health.

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