BG&A Files Appellate Brief Challenging IRS Tax Treatment of Health Plans Purchased Through Federal Exchanges

Boyden Gray & Associates filed an amicus brief in Halbig v. Sebelius, in the D.C. Circuit, on behalf of the Galen Institute, a non-profit health and tax policy research organization. The brief argues, in support of Appellants, that the IRS rule allowing “premium assistance credits” for health plans purchased through federal Exchanges violates the plain text of the Affordable Care Act, which limits the credit to plans purchased through “an Exchange established by the State.” In addition, the general rule of Chevron deference to agency interpretations does not apply here, because Congress must speak clearly when it wants to delegate discretion over major questions with significant political and economic ramifications, and when it wants to alter the federal-state balance of power in an area like health insurance regulation traditionally controlled by the States.