By Elias Neibart ’16, Staff Writer

Recently, the United States Supreme Court agreed to hear the case of King v. Burwell, in which the plaintiff argued that because of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare), the 36 states that rely on healthcare.gov to provide insurance should not be able to receive insurance subsidies from the federal government. As of now, 87% of people in these states receive federal help in paying for health insurance; these subsidies, which are now in jeopardy, cut, on average, 67% of insurance costs. Apparently, the creators of ObamaCare failed to address this anywhere in their legislation, which is around 2,700 pages long. This case holds massive implications, and if the Court sides with King, healthcare will become much more expensive for millions of Americans, and ObamaCare’s long term viability and success will be called into question.

As the American people anxiously await the high court’s decision, we are all left asking ourselves, “Really? Again?” ObamaCare has been a disaster from the start. The law’s blunders began with the rollout of the website, healthcare.gov, when the site experienced countless technical difficulties and made it almost impossible for Americans to browse options and sign up for healthcare. Then, this past summer, the Supreme Court ruled that the crafts store Hobby Lobby would be exempt from the ObamaCare mandate that companies are required to provide abortion and contraception coverage to all employees. This decision came after Hobby Lobby argued that the law violated their religious liberty. The most recent, and arguably the most abhorrent of the ObamaCare blunders is the leak from Jonathan Gruber, one of the chief architects in the making of the law, who stated that “lack of transparency: and ‘the stupidity of the American voter’” allowed the controversial healthcare law to pass. Even with all of these pitfalls, if the President’s healthcare law had been successful in its purpose (making healthcare more affordable) then critics might have been able to overlook its previous setbacks. However, surprisingly enough, ObamaCare has done the exact opposite of its altruistic intentions. Premiums have skyrocketed, up to 78% higher than before the legislation for some Americans, and many people have lost their old coverage due to the law’s new regulations and mandates on healthcare companies. In every respect, the Affordable Care Act has been and will continue to be a colossal failure. As Republicans claim their new majority in Congress this January, they must work not only to fully repeal ObamaCare, but  also to replace it with a free-market alternative that gives power and choice to the patient.

This new healthcare law would allow all forms of health insurance to be bought with pre-taxable income, unlike the system now in which only employer-based health insurance is tax advantageous. The new law would rely on the power and beauty of state freedoms: the federal government would give states autonomy regarding subsidy payments, and after the federal government sets goals, the states would be permitted to use their own innovative mechanisms and ideas to reach these goals. This new healthcare system would incentivize the use of Health Savings Accounts (HSA), which would allow people with high-deductible plans to deposit their savings in tax-free accounts. HSA’s put the individual in the driver’s seat, giving him or her more control over his or her health coverage. The new system should eradicate onerous regulations and mandates on insurance companies to provide “essential benefits,” allowing the individual to be the sole architect of his or her plan, not the federal government.

Many students at Newark Academy have suggested that repealing ObamaCare would set the nation backwards. Ruby Gould ’15 remarks, “After its enforcement, so many Americans have grown reliant upon it, and to take it away at this point in time when it’s just beginning to work seems counterproductive to me.” However, the claim that “so many Americans” are reliant on ObamaCare completely disregards the millions of people who have experienced higher premiums and have lost their coverage. Others see the situation like I do, and believe that the GOP must present an alternative plan. Zach Persing ’15 says, “The best thing for the [GOP] to do would be to continue to press for a repeal of the law but also to provide alternative solutions to healthcare problems in the country.” I share Zach’s sentiment and believe that in order for ObamaCare to be successfully repealed, there must be a viable alternative.

Soon, our lawmakers will have a choice; will they continue to try to patch up a system and law that has been detrimental to the American public and economy? Or will they embrace common-sense practical reform that would establish a truly free market and individually driven healthcare?   The answer may not be an easy one for lawmakers, but it is imperative that our new Congress choose the latter. Repeal ObamaCare, start from scratch, and commit to what makes America great—economic freedom and individual liberty.