Pennsylvania Attorney General Demands That Trump Administration Clarify ACA Enforcement

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Pennsylvania AG Josh Shapiro

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro demanded the Trump administration to clarify its position regarding the implementation of certain provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

On Monday, Shapiro sent letters to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar regarding the matter.

In the letters, Shapiro raised concerns about the latest court filing by the Department of Justice regarding ACA. He noted that the DOJ did not defend the healthcare law’s provisions related to pre-existing conditions and preventing discriminatory pricing.

Contradicting Positions on ACA Provisions Created Confusion

Additionally, Shapiro told Sessions and Azar that their positions on those provisions are contradictory, creating confusion among regulators, insurers and patients.

In his letter to Sessions, Shapiro noted the U.S. attorney general recently stated that ACA’s guaranteed issue and community rating provisions “will become invalid as of January 1, 2019.” He also stressed that Sessions declared that the DOJ will no longer defend the constitutionality of those provisions in court.