The incoming Trump administration could choose to no longer defend the executive branch against the suit, which challenges the administration’s authority to spend billions of dollars on health insurance subsidies for low- and moderate-income Americans, handing House Republicans a big victory on separation-of-power issues.
But a sudden loss of the disputed subsidies could conceivably cause the health care program to implode, leaving millions of people without access to health insurance before Republicans have prepared a replacement. That could lead to chaos in the insurance market and spur a political backlash just as Republicans gain full control of the government.
To stave off that outcome, Republicans could find themselves in the awkward position of appropriating huge sums to temporarily prop up the Obama health care law, angering conservative voters who have been demanding an end to the law for years.
In another twist, Donald J. Trump’s administration, worried about preserving executive branch prerogatives, could choose to fight its Republican allies in the House on some central questions in the dispute.
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