The ACA is vulnerable as the case challenging a judge's decision to strike down the federal health law moves forward in court, according to USA Today.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans is slated to hear oral arguments in the case July 9.
Seven things to know:
1. The case focuses on a December district court decision to invalidate the ACA.
2. Federal Judge Reed O'Connor, of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, ruled in a lawsuit brought by Republican-led states that the entire healthcare law is invalid because Congress eliminated the ACA's individual insurance mandate penalty.
3. Judge O'Connor's ruling was appealed, and the ACA has remained U.S. law while the case is pending.
4. The U.S. Justice Department is supporting the judge's ruling and filed a formal request May 1 to strike down the entire health law. Eighteen states, including Texas, agree with the district court's decision, according to USA Today.
5. Meanwhile, Democratic state attorneys general from about 20 states are challenging the Texas judge's decision and want to uphold the health law.
6. A three-judge panel of the appeals court will hear oral arguments in the case, including two judges picked by Republican presidents and one by a Democrat president, USA Today reported.
7. According to the newspaper, most legal experts expect the case to make it to the U.S. Supreme Court — possibly in 2020 — if the appeals court agrees that the ACA should be dismantled.
Read the full USA Today report here.