A U.S. judge ruled against 18 states and the District of Columbia in a court battle over the current administration's decision to end cost-sharing reduction payments to insurers.
U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria with the Northern District of California in San Francisco said Wednesday he would not block President Donald Trump's decision to stop the payments amid a lawsuit over whether the action conflicts with federal law, according to Reuters.
President Trump announced Oct. 12 his administration would end CSR payments, which help insurers selling plans on the ACA exchanges subsidize the cost of coverage for low-income Americans. Eighteen states and the District of Columbia subsequently sued the administration in an effort to continue the payments and avoid chaos in the marketplace.
"Taking these legally required subsidies away from working families' health plans and forcing them to choose between paying rent or their medical bills is completely reckless," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, one of the plaintiffs, said in a statement Oct. 13. "This is sabotage, plain and simple. I and many of my attorney general colleagues will fight vigorously to ensure Californians and all Americans as taxpayers receive the healthcare the law provides,"
But Mr. Chhabria sided with the administration Wednesday, saying most states had prepared for such a decision and made efforts to stabilize premiums, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Additionally, the judge indicated the decision may have been lawful, saying, "Although the case is at an early stage, and although it's a close question, it appears initially that the Trump administration has the stronger legal argument," the report states.
The judge's ruling follows a lawsuit filed by House Republicans challenging the implementation of the subsidies. In May 2016, U.S. District Court Judge Rosemary Collyer ruled Congress never appropriated the money for the subsidies, so the payments were not properly funded. Former President Barack Obama's administration appealed that decision, and the current White House has delayed the lawsuit on various occasions. The subsidies were paid monthly up until October.