The Affordable Care Act will remain in effect during the appeal, states the judge



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The Texas District Judge, Reed O. Connor, said in his ruling that "many ordinary Americans would otherwise face great uncertainty during the appeals process".

Sunday's decree also paves the way for a coalition of Democratic states defending the law on appeal from O & # 39; Connor's original decision. the individual mandate penalty by reducing it to $ 0. This made the mandate itself unconstitutional and the rest of the law can not be maintained. However, he has not issued an injunction to prevent federal and regional governments from enforcing the law.

The decision nevertheless cast doubt on the future of the health care coverage of millions of Americans on Obamacare scholarships and on Medicaid's expansion. It also threatened to remove popular protections for people with pre-existing illnesses, as well as money-saving measures for older people receiving Medicare, to let the children follow their parents' policies until they were sick. at the age of 26 and allow many Americans to access free preventive tests. birth control.

Although the Trump administration did not advocate for the Affordable Care Act, officials immediately stated that the law remained in effect during the appeal process. But California and other states defending the law had asked O & # 39; Connor to give a new order stating it.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who heads the coalition of democratic states, asked the court to take the necessary legal steps to allow states to appeal the decision "promptly". A spokesman for the Becerra office said that with the latter order he was now able to formally appeal the decision.

Becerra reacted to the judge's ruling on Sunday and said in a statement to CNN: "We have always said that we would protect the health care of Americans and state that ACA was the law of the land. Today the judge accepted what we had asked for when we filed our expedited petition, but in the end we are working to make health care affordable and accessible to millions of Americans. So let's go ahead. "

Meanwhile, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who headed the group of Republican states that sought to overthrow the law, said Sunday that he was not going to get away with it. he was "anxious to defend the decision of the District Court declaring Obamacare unconstitutional".

"We have Paxton said:" No problem with the suspension of the district court, which offers states the opportunity to develop plans to meet the needs of their residents in health care, " said Paxton

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