I took a crack at explaining #Talevski, an extremely consequential #SCOTUS case that had oral arguments this week. #CripTheVote https://19thnews.org/2022/11/supreme-court-marion-county-talevski-medicaid/

Oral arguments in HHC v. #Talevski just concluded. The National Health Law Program is holding a webinar on Thursday at 2pm ET on reactions from Jane Perkins, Legal Director, and Sarah Somers, NC Managing Attorney. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cfhnbygFRtmx8RAXTokjlQ

#SCOTUS #Medicaid

Please send good energy to #Medicaid beneficiaries & advocates everywhere today. Between #midterms & #Talevski, what happens today will determine the course of access to #healthcare & other safety nets for people with low incomes. This is especially true for people of color, people with #disabilities, #LBGTQ+ people, and #women, all of whom disproportionately experience #poverty due to structural #racism, #cisheteropatriarchy, and #ableism. And please #VOTE.

#Medicaid is vital. It helped me immensely while I was enrolled as a beneficiary, and it has helped generations of people access essential health care. Sending care & and solidarity to Medicaid and other spending clause program beneficiaries past and present as we head into a big day tomorrow. #SCOTUS #Talevski 6/6

And *that* is why it’s so painful to have #SCOTUS not only take up the #Talevski case, which challenges decades of legal precedent (sound familiar?), but schedule arguments ON THE SAME DAY AS #MIDTERMS. 5/

And that is how I knew that I wanted to be a public policy lawyer.

Yet potential solutions to laws that lose (as could happen with #Talevski) or never had (as we thought was the case with NY) teeth are only as good as your ability to pass them through the political process. 4/

Important 🧵 over on the bird app on what’s on the line in the #Talevski case before #SCOTUS tomorrow from my brillIant colleague Kevin De Liban of Legal Aid of Arkansas.

De Leban writes, “If there’s a law on the books and someone breaks it and hurts you, you can sue them, right? Nope. Not that simple.”

You should read the whole thing: https://twitter.com/kevindeliban/status/1589791396722266112?s=46&t=txT2hfyHWGtN86OqH_ouLA

I share some of my own thoughts, including a personal anecdote, below. 1/

@AngryBlackLady Absolutely—#Bracken could do expansive, intergenerational harm. We're also deeply concerned about #Talevski tomorrow, and what it might mean for the future of enforcement in #Medicaid (e.g., entitlements to many, albeit not all, repro and sexual health services) and other spending clause programs (e.g., SNAP, housing, energy assistance, etc.). #SCOTUS

@Wtime90 I wish I had a good answer for this. The Supreme Court has recognized the right of individuals to enforce their rights under the Medicaid Act for over 40 years. Since Medicaid’s enactment, Congress passed a law that clearly recognized that right, and amended the Act several times without taking it away. So the fact that the Supreme Court even accepted cert (i.e., took up this case) in the #Talevski case doesn’t bode great. 1/

Moreover, Jane said, “The idea that the court would accept [the #Talevski] case and accept that question of whether you can ever enforce these laws is of concern. The recent court decisions—#Dobbs in the #abortion context coming to mind—shows the court is willing to set aside precedent."

Read more via #NPR: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/11/06/1133947431/scotus-nursing-home-case-could-limit-right-to-sue

Tune into #SCOTUS oral arguments Tuesday: https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/live.aspx 2/

NHeLP’s Legal Director Jane Perkins via #NPR on the #Talevski case that the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments for on Tuesday:

“The reach of an adverse decision would be catastrophic. It would leave [#Medicaid and other spending clause programs that rely on money flowing from the federal government to states] really standing out there without a true enforcement mechanism.” #SCOTUS 1/

As if #midterms weren’t enough, on Tuesday, #SCOTUS will hear oral arguments in the #Talevski case. The stakes are immensely high for beneficiaries of #Medicaid and other social safety net programs. An adverse decision could gut a beneficiary’s ability to enforce legal protections that are being systematically violated by their state. More info: https://healthlaw.org/news/nhelp-friend-of-the-court-brief-seeks-to-keep-the-courthouse-doors-open-for-low-income-people/