Benefits and Drawbacks of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2010, has been a transformative force in the American healthcare system. Known colloquially as Obamacare, the legislation aimed to provide affordable health insurance coverage for all Americans.
One of the key achievements of the ACA has been making prescription drugs more affordable, particularly for senior citizens who were previously unable to afford all their medications. The number of prescription and generic drugs covered by the ACA has been growing every year, resulting in significant savings for millions of Americans. According to a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services press release from 2017, Medicare beneficiaries alone have saved over $26.8 billion on prescription drugs under Obamacare.
The ACA has also addressed the issue of preexisting health conditions, ensuring that individuals cannot be denied coverage because of a preexisting health problem. This has been a significant step forward in ensuring access to healthcare for all.
Businesses with 50 or more full-time employees are now required to offer insurance or make payments to cover healthcare expenses for employees. This provision has led to many businesses re-evaluating their employee benefits packages. Some, in an attempt to avoid these requirements, have been cutting hours from employee schedules to get below the 30-hour-per-week definition of a full-time employee.
Insurance companies are no longer allowed to maintain a preset dollar limit on the coverage they provide their customers. Furthermore, they must now spend at least 80 percent of insurance premiums on medical care and improvements, ensuring that the majority of premiums go towards healthcare services rather than administrative costs.
The ACA has also introduced measures to prevent unreasonable rate increases by insurers. This has helped to stabilise the healthcare market and provide more predictable costs for consumers.
The ACA website now has sections devoted to explaining procedures and available options. Hospitals and public health agencies have also set up programs to help consumers and business owners navigate the enrollment process.
The ACA covers many screenings and preventive services with low copays or deductibles, encouraging regular check-ups and early detection of health issues. This proactive approach to healthcare has the potential to reduce healthcare costs in the long term.
Despite its many achievements, the ACA has been a highly controversial piece of legislation. The initial rollout of the ACA website was fraught with technical problems, making it difficult for people to enroll and leading to delays and lower-than-expected signups.
The future of the ACA remains uncertain, as it can be amended, and changes in the healthcare field, along with changes to the political makeup of future presidential administrations and Congress, make it likely that the ACA will continue to change for years to come. However, the undeniable impact it has had on millions of Americans cannot be ignored. The ACA has helped millions of Americans obtain health insurance coverage, reducing the number of uninsured Americans and improving access to healthcare for all.
){kind=link}