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SALT LAKE CITY - It's a decision that affects nearly every one of us.
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld President Obama's health care reform law Thursday in a five to four vote. This means the most controversial part of the law - requiring Americans to buy insurance or be fined - is legal.
The court said that fine is essentially a tax, giving the government power to impose it.
The health care law is expected to bring coverage to about 30 million uninsured people nationwide. About 17 percent of Utahns are included in that group.
Bobbi Mathews comes to the state Capitol for a news conference with a story to tell. Her daughter Katie had a rare heart and immune system disease. For a while, private insurance cover her medical expenses.
It'll make it much more attractive for small business owners to hire employees and grow their businesses because they'll be able to afford to offer healthcare as a benefit.
–George Merrill.
"By the time Katie reached the age of nine, she reached her $2.5-million cap," said Matthews. "Then we were left stranded and we had to go on Medicaid."
Once on Medicaid, the family scrambled to get Katie's medical needs and costs covered. She died in 2010.
"Back then, there was a lifetime limit. Once you reached it, you were done," said Matthews.
Those now insured may avoid a spike in premiums because the court upheld the individual mandate, so a revenue stream to pay for the changes still exists.
For the uninsured, no one can be turned away. Those who need coverage will have help paying.
"Absolutely, the number of people with disabilities in Utah who do not have any kind of coverage, including Medicaid, is astounding," said Utah Disability Caucus chair Miriam Hyde. "Now they will. We hope they will."
People with preexisting conditions would no longer be denied coverage. Children under age 26 will be able to stay on parents insurance. Small businesses will get tax credits to offer coverage and predictable costs.
"It'll make it much more attractive for small business owners to hire employees and grow their businesses because they'll be able to afford to offer healthcare as a benefit," said small business owner George Merrill.
The big question: cost. Will it really drive health costs down, and what's the impact for taxpayers?
Bobbi Mathews thinks the plan is good for families facing what she faced. "Now with this situation, people won't have to go through that," she said. "I hope nobody has to go through that."
Bad policy is bad policy. We need to do everything we can under the law to reject and replace this health care act.
–Gov. Gary Herbert
Though many support the ruling, others -- mainly Republicans -- vow to have it overturned. The intense debate over the plan's cost - as well as it's efficiency - will no doubt continue.
Utah was one of the 26 states that sued the federal government over the health care law. State leaders voiced their disappointment in the court's decision Tuesday.
"Bad policy is bad policy," said Gov. Gary Herbert. "We need to do everything we can under the law to reject and replace this health care act."
Gov. Herbert says the health care law will damage the economy. He says in Utah, Medicaid costs will increase to over a billion dollars over the next decade.
But despite his opposition to the law, the governor said Utah will "abide by its mandates" while working within its confines to make changes.
Every Republican member of Utah's Congressional delegation issued statements denouncing the decision.
