Texas Judge Obstructs Affordable Act Coverage Mandate For Some Cancer Screenings, Prophylaxis

A Texas federal judge reportedly blocked Obamacare's mandate that health insurance plans cover preventive care, including screenings for certain cancers and pre-exposure prophylaxis against HIV (PrEP), at no cost to patients.
The ruling does not apply to preventive services, such as breast cancer screening, recommended before Obamacare was enacted in 2010.
Eight individuals and two businesses brought the legal challenge. They argued that the free PrEP requirement requires business owners and consumers to pay for services that "encourage homosexual behavior, prostitution, sexual promiscuity, and intravenous drug use" despite their religious beliefs.
The PrEP drugs approved in the U.S. to prevent HIV infection are made by Gilead Sciences Inc GILD and by ViiV Healthcare, a joint venture of GSK Plc GSK, Pfizer Inc PFE and Shionogi & Co Ltd.
White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said the Biden administration was reviewing the decision.
Major medical groups criticized the decision, Reuters reported. American Medical Association President Jack Resneck called it "deeply flawed" and said that patients "will be subjected to needless illness and preventable deaths" as a result.
GSK and ViiV said in a statement that they were "concerned about any court order or policy that could negatively impact access to important health prevention services, including PrEP for HIV," and supported an appeal of O'Connor's order.