In an 11th hour twist, the Supreme Court announced today that it has upheld the Affordable Care Act, including the controversial individual mandate. By a 5 to 4 vote, the Court concluded that the mandate requiring individuals to purchase health insurance is a constitutional exercise of the federal government’s taxing authority. This news may come as a shock to many who had speculated, in the weeks and months since the Court heard oral arguments in the case, that the law would be struck down.
So, what does this mean for plan sponsors? Business as usual for now! We are sure that this is not the end of the debate, and all eyes will now turn to Congress and the upcoming Presidential elections. However, plan sponsors that have delayed implementation of specific health care reform requirements (hoping that the law would be overturned) should now re-focus their attention on compliance.