Judgment on Obamacare: The Law Once Thought Dead Lives On

President Obama is able to win over the Supreme Court on his most important project.

John Roberts, chief justice of the Supreme Court in the United States, broke his silence on Thursday and delivered good news to President Barack Obama and millions of uninsured Americans. As early as three months ago, the judge came to the conclusion that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, is constitutional in its current form. The controversial health care reform has had to face all sorts of political challenges and the fear that the law would be either drastically changed or entirely stuck down was still great. The decision, therefore, must be regarded victory for Obama and a dress rehearsal for his second election to the presidency.

The focus of the Supreme Court’s decision was the requirement that all Americans buy health insurance. This part of the law had run into much resistance, although it doesn’t take effect until 2014 and its actual effects won’t be known until then. The aversion that many critics of Obamacare have towards an insurance mandate is hard for Europeans to comprehend. They believe that the state should not be allowed to restrict the freedom of its citizens by forcing them to buy insurance.

But in matters of health the principle of freedom, which is axiomatic for many Americans, is out of place. And the Supreme Court now agrees. No one – not even the most athletic, the most health conscious, or the richest person – is free from the threat of sickness and injury. It can affect anyone. Illness does not abide by the rules of the free market. Anyone who is sick wants to be healthy. In that desire all men are equal.

It is therefore an absolutely necessary step that both the poorest and sickest in the United States are finally brought into the social safety net. Thanks to the health care reform, private insurance companies are now forbidden from denying Americans coverage because of their medical history. The fear of many young adults in the US –that they won’t be able to afford to get a disease – is now alleviated. As of now, about a third of 19-29 year olds are uninsured, because in the transition phase from school to work insurance is often not affordable. Obamacare now at least ensures that that those in this group up to the age of 26 can be covered on their parents’ plans.

Those wealthy Americans who have decided against an insurance policy because they believe it is possible for them to pay for medical expenses in case of an illness will probably not face a huge problem with the new law. The financial penalties for not buying insurance will not strain their wallets too much. And if they do, they might be reminded what it’s like for the disadvantaged who can’t afford medical expenses to live with mountains of debt.