‘A mixed bag’: Fifth Circuit rules on ACA preventive services legal case
Fierce Healthcare June 21, 2024
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has issued a decision in a major legal case that observers have said could fundamentally alter the preventive services provision in the Affordable Care Act.
The plaintiffs, Braidwood Management, argued the preventive services provision, which private plans and Medicaid expansion programs are required to cover without cost-sharing, is unconstitutional.
“Our decision today is something of a mixed bag,” the court said in its final opinion.
Its ruling upholds a lower court’s decision declaring nationwide coverage through the Preventive Services Task Force under the ACA as unconstitutional, and said the plaintiffs in this case do not need to cover these preventive services through their health plans.
The nationwide injunction imposed by the lower court was...