Federal lawsuit could end ACA free preventive services

A federal lawsuit heard in Texas last month could upend or even eliminate the preventive care requirement in the Affordable Care Act (Source: “Lawsuit Could End Free Preventive Health Checkups,” Pew Stateline, Aug. 9).

A group of patients and employers are arguing that the requirement is unconstitutional. The federal judge hearing the case, Reed O’Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, in 2018 struck down the Affordable Care Act as unconstitutional, only to be overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2021.

According to a July report by the Urban Institute, a nonprofit research organization, health plans now cover more than 100 preventive health services with no out-of-pocket cost to patients. Among them are screening and counseling for alcohol misuse and obesity, screenings for blood pressure and depression, and immunizations.

Eliminating the preventive care mandate, many health policy analysts agree, could have far-reaching and dramatic effects, potentially causing millions of patients to put off or neglect health screenings that could detect diseases early. More than 60 professional medical organizations, including the American Medical Association, published a joint statement last month warning of a dire impact of striking down the provision.