The Supreme Court will take a look at another challenge of the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, in the fall. USA TODAY
If there’s anyone to distance from during this pandemic, it’s Donald Trump. 
His theatrics and lies know no bounds. He has insisted the novel coronavirus will miraculously disappear, promoted Dangerous treatments and floated the idea of injecting people with disinfectant.
Yet many Republican politicians refuse to question this president. For some reason, they feel compelled to align themselves with him. Gov. Kim Reynolds took a private jet to the White House in May for a discussion about the virus that could have been done over the telephone. It amounted to a photo-op.
Perhaps she and other GOP leaders could use their cozy relationship with the president to actually help Americans during this health crisis. They should try to persuade him to put an end to a lawsuit that could destroy the Affordable Care Act.


The Supreme Court is set to hear the case this fall. It was brought by Republican-led states and backed by the Trump administration. The result could be striking down most or all of the health reform law, which would have disastrous consequences for Iowans.
Along with other Americans, we could lose the expansion of Medicaid and federal subsidies that help Iowans pay for private insurance. We could lose protections for people with preexisting conditions and coverage for young adults under their parents’ health insurance. 
It is not only individual Iowans who would suffer. When people don’t have insurance, health providers and hospitals are not paid to treat them. The ensuing loss of revenue would compromise health services and infrastructure needed by all of us. 
“What is at stake here is just enormous — and what a time for this to happen during this unbelievable COVID-19 pandemic," said Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller during a recent news conference. "For people’s health care to be put in jeopardy at this time — it’s as bad a time as you can imagine, in my view.”
Miller supports the ACA and is part of a 20-state coalition of Democrats who want the Supreme Court to uphold it. He said the best possible outcome would be for states and the Trump administration to withdraw the lawsuit.

Reynolds, as well as Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst, should encourage exactly that. 
For a decade, GOP politicians have challenged the law with votes to repeal it, lawsuits and refusal to make legislative fixes, while never providing a viable alternative. 
The ACA has been implemented in every state. It allows entrepreneurs and early retirees to buy coverage on their own without the help of an employer. That is especially important as millions of Americans have lost their jobs in recent months. 
A recent study found states that expanded Medicaid saw greater decreases in cancer mortality rates than states that did not. Better access to care means fewer deaths. 
The ACA is not perfect, but it insures millions of Americans, protects them from insurance company abuses and allows people with preexisting health problems to buy coverage.
It’s also lovely darn important for Americans to have health care during an infectious disease pandemic. 
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