Anxiety, Anticipation Over PPACA Ruling Due Thursday
By Dr. James Palermo // June 25, 2012
Healthcare Policy
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA — We’re still waiting. Much to the chagrin of the media, the politicos and pundits within the Beltway and beyond, and healthcare providers, payers and consumers, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) ruling on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was not released by the high court today. The high anxiety and anticipation associated with the judicial fate of the PPACA will persist for another three days, culminating with a ruling on Thursday, the last day of SCOTUS’ term.
Who Wins, Who Loses?
To be sure, as soon as the ruling is handed down, politicians and lawyers will be lined up to offer immediate analysis, there will be millions of immediate post-ruling press conferences and press releases, and the debate on “who wins, and who loses,” will rage on.
A Sunday LA Times article suggests that: “If the court were to strike down the mandate while upholding the rest of the sweeping law, both sides could claim victory. The Republicans could say Obama and the Democrats were slapped down for violating the Constitution. The president and his allies could say the insurance reforms and the expansion of Medicaid would provide better healthcare to millions of Americans.”
Forget The ‘Spin,’ Focus On Healthcare Needs
However, it should not be about political winners and losers, but must be all about what the Mayo brothers, Drs. Will and Charlie, based their approach to healthcare on: “The needs of the patient always come first.” It is undeniable that motivation for reform is a healthcare system that fails too many people and a conviction that America can find legal, legitimate solutions to address those failures, which are centered around affordability, accessibility, care coordination and quality.
As the dust clears later this week on the fate of the PPACA, the political spin on both sides will be rampant. However, the “winners” will be those politicians, policy makers and members of the healthcare industry who rise above the political fray and stay focused on the Mayo motto, so that, at the end of the day, clinical healthcare redesign and reform to legally expand health insurance coverage meets the needs of all Americans.
