The Actor's Fund: "Good News for Artists" on Obamacare Ruling

Today, the Supreme Court declared the constitutionality of President Obama's individual mandate insurance law that requires individuals to get insurance or pay a tax in "penalty" beginning in 2014.

The following is a special statement from The Actors Fund’s President & CEO Joseph P. Benincasa in response to today’s Supreme Court decision.

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“Today’s Supreme Court decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act is good news for all artists.

Since 1998, the Artists Health Insurance Resource Center at The Actors Fund has worked to find affordable health insurance and health care for thousands of visual and performing artists. Today’s Supreme Court decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act will help more artists secure health insurance. We look forward to playing a key role in making sure that every artist is insured.

Lack of insurance is an ongoing crisis among artists, many of whom are self-employed or work in small businesses that cannot afford to offer it as a benefit. Almost one out of three workers in our community is uninsured.

The Affordable Care Act includes numerous provisions that will make comprehensive insurance accessible to almost everyone in our community. Subsidies for the purchase of private insurance, health plan Exchanges that give small businesses and individuals the buying power of group purchasers (such as large companies and unions), the expansion of Medicaid eligibility, and the end of exclusion from coverage based on pre-existing conditions are just a few of the benefits of this law.

The mandate to purchase health insurance is an essential provision of the law, as well. It should make the cost more affordable for everyone by increasing the number of healthy individuals who purchase insurance, and force those who shift the cost of their care onto others to take financial responsibility for it.

As it has for 130 years, The Actors Fund continues to work diligently for the well-being of artists and entertainers. For us and the community we serve, this is not a political issue, but an issue of long-overdue access to quality, affordable health care for the people we serve.”

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The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that helps everyone – performers and those behind the scenes – who works in performing arts and entertainment, helping more than 12,800 people directly each year, and hundreds of thousands online. Serving professionals in film, theatre, television, music, opera, radio and dance, The Fund’s programs include social services and emergency assistance, health care and insurance, housing, and employment and training services. With offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Actors Fund has – for 130 years – been a safety net for those in need, crisis or transition. Visit www.actorsfund.org.