Supreme Court rules for insurers in Risk Corridors case

The Affordable Care Act requires the federal government to pay insurers the full amount of their losses under the temporary Risk Corridors Program and insurers who claim losses under the program may sue in federal claims court to recover damages for unpaid amounts, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled today. The ruling reverses several appeals court decisions that found subsequent appropriations riders impliedly “repealed or suspended” the federal government’s obligation to pay the full amount of insurers’ losses under the program, and remands the cases back to the courts for further proceedings consistent with the opinion. Four health insurers participating in the health insurance exchanges sued the federal government for damages in the case, asserting that their plans were unprofitable during the three-year Risk Corridors Program and the Department of Health and Human Services owes them hundreds of millions of dollars. Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor delivered today’s opinion for the court.