Michigan Seeks To Defend ACA Healthcare Protections For 650,000 State Residents

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healthcare-6

By Doug Cunningham

The state of Michigan is intervening in a federal court case to defend the Affordable Care Act, with health care protections for millions of people, including 650,000 Michiganders, at stake. Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Attorney General Dana Nessel are coordinating the intervention. Kelly Rossman-McKinney is the spokeswoman for Nessel’s office and talked to WSJM News about the legal move.

“We have hundreds of thousands of residents in Michigan, including those with pre-existing conditions, who rely on the Affordable Care Act for their healthcare. And we are committed to insuring that that healthcare continues to be available,” says Rossman-McKinney.

A Texas federal court judge ruled the health care act unconstitutional in December. It is the appeal of that decision to the federal Fifth Circuit that Michigan seeks to join.

“This is not a frivolous action by any means. This is a very carefully reviewed and thought-out approach,” said Rossman-McKinney. “We’re working in tandem with other states that also have newly elected Attorneys General.”

Those states are Colorado and Nevada.

Iowa is also joining Michigan to defend the ACA. Twenty states with Republican attorneys general are currently trying to destroy the ACA in the Texas case, while 16 states with Democratic attorneys general are defending it as it moves to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.