U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Health Reform Law

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Statement of Illinois PIRG State Director Brian Imus

Illinois PIRG

Statement of Illinois PIRG State Director Brian Imus on U.S. Supreme Court Decision to Uphold Health Reform Law:

“Today’s decision is good news for consumers in Illinois. Insurance companies can’t go back to the days of dropping your coverage once you become ill, or denying coverage to sick children. And beginning in 2014, the days of insurers being able to deny anyone coverage for “pre-existing conditions” will be history.

“Now it’s time for Illinois leaders to move forward on the next steps, and make sure health reform delivers lower costs and better quality coverage.

“With the last excuse for delay now behind us, Illinois should move ahead to put important consumer protections in place, like setting up a new competitive marketplace for health insurance, and adopting new rules to protect consumers from unjustified rate hikes.  These kinds of reforms are critical to give consumers a better deal on coverage, and it’s up to the states to make them happen.

“To prevent any further delay and ensure Illinois can implement a state-based health insurance exchange, Governor Quinn should issue an executive order immediately to begin the process of establishing the exchange.”