Supreme Court Upholds Affordable Care Act

The U.S. Supreme Court today has ruled that the Affordable Care Act and its individual mandate requiring people to buy health insurance is constitutional.

The decision is a major victory for the Obama administration, which touted the law passed in March 2010 as its signature legislative achievement. 

The Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments on the case in late March before issuing a decision at 10 a.m. Thursday. The court voted 5-4 to uphold the law with Chief Justice John Roberts casting the deciding vote and writing the majority opinion.

The central issue considered by the court was whether Congress could mandate people to buy health insurance. Critics said that Congress could not force people to buy a product they didn't want. But the majority agreed that those who did not buy insurance could be mandated to pay a tax, which Congress has the authority to impose.

Supporters say the law will reduce health care costs by broadening the base of those paying premiums and by reducing costs associated with the uninsured who resort to seeking treatment in emergency rooms.

Had the individual mandate provision been stripped from the law, many other provisions–such as covering people with pre-existing conditions and not capping insurance coverage–most likely would have been removed as well.

The only part of the law that was not upheld was the proposed expansion of Medicaid, the federal healthcare program for low-income people.

Republicans have called for the entire law to be repealed, although it's not clear to what extent the issue will become a flashpoint in the presidential campaign.

What do you think of today's decision to uphold the Affordable Healthcare Act? How will it impact you?