What if scenario- Obamacare struck down
Obama really screwed things up even if Obamacare is struck down by the Supreme Court in the next few weeks. Hopefully a Romney admin can sort things out quickly (allow insurers to compete across state lines) and offer consumers competitive options.
In the mean time, your taxes and premiums will go up thanks to Obama…
—
If the mandate is struck down, that would still leave in place a major expansion of Medicaid, the federal-state safety net program for low-income people.
The Medicaid expansion was originally estimated to account for about half the more than 30 million people slated to get coverage under the law. Without a mandate, the number would be smaller but still significant.
Federal tax credits to help middle-class people buy private health coverage would also survive, as would new state-based insurance markets.
Such subsidies have never previously been available, and millions are expected to take advantage of them, whether or not insurance is required by law. Still, it could be tricky to salvage the law’s full blueprint for helping middle-class uninsured people.
Overturning the mandate would have harmful consequences for the private insurance market. Under the law, insurers would still have to accept all applicants regardless of health problems, and they would be limited in what they can charge older, sicker customers.
As a result, premiums for people who directly buy their own coverage would jump by 15 percent to 20 percent, the Congressional Budget Office estimates. Older, sicker people would flock to get health insurance but younger, healthier ones would hold back.
To forestall such a problem, the administration asked the court – if it declares the mandate unconstitutional – to also strike down certain consumer protections, including the requirement on insurers to cover people with pre-existing health problems. That would mitigate a damaging spike in premiums.
Publius Prime 