Despite some major victories won for Americans with the Affordable Care Act, some lawmakers are determined to bring it down ”“ including Maine’s Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe.

Snowe released a statement in January saying that she is joining 35 Republican colleagues in filing an Amicus brief with the Supreme Court calling for the repeal of the act. Snowe said in the prepared statement, “I am pleased to join so many of my colleagues in filing this Amicus brief, which represents a historic opportunity to reassert the significance of the judiciary’s understanding of Congressional intent when judging legislation, and to support the 26 states and countless small businesses that are also fighting the disastrous health care law.

“The law is a house of cards, and at its foundation is a mandate forcing every American to purchase health insurance. The original bill debated by Congress had at one point a severability clause that would have permitted a specific provision in the law to be struck down without striking down the entire law, and this clause was explicitly removed to prevent such an occurrence.”

Snowe has said previously that the process of passing the act was not positive and did not allow for amendments or much discussion back when the bill was passed in March 2010, but in an editorial board meeting with the Journal Tribune at that time, she said the bill had its merits.

She said the positive changes included tax credits for small businesses that offer health insurance to their employees, and for consumers, that insurers would no longer be allowed to decline coverage based on pre-existing conditions.

But instead of making amendments, Snowe is ready to repeal this act, and has also joined other Republican lawmakers in cosponsoring the “Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act,” which would repeal the health care law.

By repealing the entire Affordable Care Act, young people who have been able to stay on their parents’ insurance plan until age 26 could be dropped, and insurers would be able to once again decline coverage based on pre-existing conditions and place lifetime dollar limits on policies.

The law, when it takes full effect in 2014, is also expected to provide coverage for 32 million people who are uninsured.

If the law is struck down by the Supreme Court or repealed, all of these benefits would be lost. Instead of repealing the entire act, lawmakers should be working together to make amendments that would protect small businesses and individuals while getting employers on track to provide insurance to their employees.

The future costs of health care in this country will be unsustainable if we don’t get more people paying into the system and receiving the all-important preventative care that can keep people from getting diseases like diabetes and advanced cancers, and put them on plans to get healthy and fit.

We hope Sen. Snowe will reconsider her stance on repealing the Affordable Care Act and work with all of her colleagues to come up with sustainable solutions for Americans rather than letting the good this bill has done be lost.

Ӣ Ӣ Ӣ

Today’s editorial was written by City Editor Robyn Burnham on behalf of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.