In 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, expanding health coverage and prohibiting insurance companies from denying people coverage based on preexisting conditions. Furthermore, state-based marketplaces were created to help consumers compare and shop for insurance plans.
The Affordable Care Act has also made health insurance more accessible for many Americans, by requiring insurers to dedicate at least 80% of their premiums toward healthcare instead of advertising, overhead and bonuses for executives. This ensures that more people can afford quality healthcare coverage.
Affordable health insurance for everyone
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has enabled millions of people to gain access to health insurance. By expanding Medicaid coverage and offering tax credits for people with lower incomes, the ACA makes it simpler for people with limited resources to secure quality, affordable health coverage.
ACA coverage also provides access to essential health benefits, such as maternity and mental health services, prescription drugs, pediatric dental care, preventive services like screenings for colon cancer and breast cancer. These coverage options are essential in guaranteeing everyone has access to top-notch medical care.
Individual and small group health insurance can be purchased through the Marketplace using the Affordable Care Act’s comparison tool to estimate costs and determine if they qualify for financial assistance. Premium subsidies are available to those with household incomes below 400% of the federal poverty level.
Preventative care
According to the Affordable Care Act, most private health plans must cover preventive services at no cost to the patient. These include screenings, immunizations, behavioral counseling and medications that improve health outcomes.
In 2020 alone, more than 150 million Americans gained access to a wider range of services and improved their nation’s health. Of those individuals, 58 million women and 37 million children benefited from this requirement.
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), most adult health plans must cover without cost sharing a set of evidence-based preventive services recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), health plans must cover without cost sharing the full range of recommended preventive services for children, adolescents and pregnant women. These include well child visits, immunizations and screening services, behavioral/development assessments, fluoride supplements as well as screenings for autism, vision impairment, lipid disorders tuberculosis and certain genetic diseases.
Prescription drug coverage
The Affordable Care Act made numerous modifications to prescription drug coverage. It increased insurers’ minimum required drug benefits and helped close the “donut hole” in Medicare Part D plans by increasing rebates to pharmaceutical companies.
The law also expedited the approval of biosimilar drugs, which are often equivalent to brand-name medicines at lower costs. While these efforts are important, medication costs remain an enormous problem.
Voters and lawmakers alike are deeply concerned about the high costs of certain drugs. While the Affordable Care Act took steps to address this problem, debate continues to rage on.
Health care reform
The Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as the ACA, is a groundbreaking federal law that has drastically reduced the uninsured rate in America by guaranteeing those who can afford insurance access it. It has enabled millions of Americans to gain coverage and protect them from exploitative insurance company practices.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires private health insurers to charge fair premiums for individual market policies or employer-sponsored plans, and holds them accountable to use at least 80% to 85% of premium funds on medical care.
This law abolishes lifetime monetary caps on insurance policies, restricts annual caps and sets state rate reviews for premium increases. Furthermore, it prohibits insurers from excluding children with preexisting conditions or cancelling or rescinding their coverage.
The Affordable Care Act has provided health coverage to millions of children from low and middle income families. It defined pediatric dental and vision care as essential health benefits, raising Medicaid eligibility standards to 138 percent of the federal poverty level.
