Why was the Affordable Care Act of 2010 important?

Asked by: Dr. Trey Grimes PhD  |  Last update: August 22, 2023
Score: 4.8/5 (68 votes)

The main goal of the ACA was to ensure that every American could afford a health insurance plan. This allowed families whose income put them at poverty level to be able afford their health insurance premium. This is done in the form of issued tax credits.

What is the significance of the Affordable Care Act 2010?

Since its enactment on March 23, 2010, the Affordable Care Act has led to an historic advancement of health equity in the United States. This landmark law improved the health of all Americans, including women and families, kids, older adults, people with disabilities, LGBTQI+ and communities of color.

What is the importance of the Affordable Care Act?

The ACA supports public health prevention efforts. It created the Prevention and Public Health Fund, which has paid for public health efforts across the country. The ACA requires insurance policies to cover essential health benefits that can help prevent serious, costly conditions.

What are 3 benefits of the Affordable Care Act?

Affordable Care Act (ACA) basics

Among other things, the ACA made it easier for many people to get coverage, removed annual and lifetime limits on essential health benefits and put in place requirements that individuals have medical coverage or pay a tax penalty.

How did the Affordable Care Act improve quality of care?

Findings In this nationally representative cross-sectional study of 123 171 individuals, the ACA was associated with more high-value diagnostic and preventive testing, improved patient experience and access, and decreased out-of-pocket expenditures for lower income US individuals.

Obamacare Explained: Understanding the Affordable Care Act

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What are two major benefits of the Affordable Care Act?

The law has 3 primary goals:
  • Make affordable health insurance available to more people. ...
  • Expand the Medicaid program to cover all adults with income below 138% of the FPL. ...
  • Support innovative medical care delivery methods designed to lower the costs of health care generally.

How did the Affordable Care Act affect the economy?

In reviewing evidence over the past five years, this report concludes that the ACA has had no net negative economic impact and, in fact, has likely helped to stimulate growth by contributing to the slower rise in health care costs.

What are the 10 essential benefits of the Affordable Care Act?

Essential health benefits ensure that health plans cover care that patients need
  • Ambulatory patient services (outpatient services)
  • Emergency services.
  • Hospitalization.
  • Maternity and newborn care.
  • Mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment.
  • Prescription drugs.

Who does the ACA benefit the most?

2020). The coverage gains under the ACA made it easier for people to get health care. Adults with low income have benefited the most from the law's insurance subsidies, out-of-pocket cost protections, and expansion in Medicaid eligibility.

What are the two main parts of the Affordable Care Act?

The law has 2 parts: the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act.

How does the Affordable Care Act affect Americans?

Gaining insurance coverage also increased the probability of having a usual place of care by between 47.1 percent and 86.5 percent. These findings suggest that not only has the ACA decreased the number of uninsured Americans, but has substantially improved access to care for those who gained coverage.

What are three benefits of the Affordable Care Act quizlet?

Match
  • extending insurance coverage to the uninsured/underinsured.
  • decreasing costs by improving efficiency.
  • expanding prevention and wellness programs (PH measures)
  • protecting against undue financial burdens on individuals as a result of healthcare expenditures.
  • improving patient safety and quality of care.

What are some benefits of the Affordable Care Act quizlet?

Increases benefits and lower costs for consumers, bolster our health care and public health workforce and infrastructure, foster innovation and quality in our system. Covers preventative care at no cost to you, protects your choice of doctors, removes insurance company barriers to emergency services.

Why was the Affordable Care Act of 2010 controversial?

One early controversy concerned whether individuals would lose their current health plans when the new law took effect. Initially, some insured people were taken by surprise when their insurers canceled policies that did not qualify as minimum essential coverage (MEC) under the ACA.

What did the Affordable Care Act of 2010 require Americans?

The ACA significantly changed the healthcare system in the U.S. by reducing the amount individuals and families paid in uncompensated care. The act requires every American to have health insurance and provides assistance to those who cannot afford a plan.

What is one of the key goals of the Affordable health care Act of 2010 _____?

One of the key goals of the Affordable Health Care Act of 2010 is: to reduce the number of uninsured citizens in the country. A supplementary medical insurance (SMI) provides health care protection beyond the basic hospital coverage for: anyone age 65 or over who pays premiums on a voluntary basis.

How effective is the Affordable Care Act?

Indisputably, yes. More than 20 million people have gained coverage as a result of the ACA. It has dramatically reduced the uninsured rate. On the day President Obama signed the ACA, 16 percent of Americans were uninsured; in March 2020, it was nine percent.

What are four benefits with the ACA?

A set of 10 categories of services health insurance plans must cover under the Affordable Care Act. These include doctors' services, inpatient and outpatient hospital care, prescription drug coverage, pregnancy and childbirth, mental health services, and more. Some plans cover more services.

What does the ACA mostly likely to accomplish?

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) has 3 main objectives: (1) to reform the private insurance market—especially for individuals and small-group purchasers, (2) to expand Medicaid to the working poor with income up to 133% of the federal poverty level, and (3) to change the way that medical decisions ...

What is a major feature of the Affordable Care Act?

The ACA prohibits lifetime monetary caps on insurance coverage, limits the use of annual caps, and establishes state rate reviews for insurance premium increases.

What is one requirement of the Affordable Care Act?

One provision contained in the law is known as the “individual mandate” which requires that all Americans (regardless of age) be covered by health insurance (through a group or individual plan) or pay an annual financial penalty assessed by the Internal Revenue Service, unless waived under certain limited circumstances ...

What are the minimum essential coverage requirements of the Affordable Care Act?

Minimum essential coverage is an insurance plan that meets the ACA standards for a qualified health plan. A qualified health plan must be certified by the federal Health Insurance Marketplace, provide 10 essential health benefits required by the ACA and follow federal limits on fees like deductibles and copays.

Did the Affordable Care Act save money?

Yet the ACA has more than delivered on that promise, saving about $4,000 per family. And these lower health care premiums probably contribute to the recent rise in workers' wages.

Did the Affordable Care Act save lives?

We find a reduction in all-cause mortality in ages 20 to 64 equaling 11.36 deaths per 100,000 individuals, a 3.6 percent decrease. This estimate is largely driven by reductions in causes of death likely to be influenced by access to health care, and equates to one life saved per 310 newly covered individuals.

What would happen if the Affordable Care Act is repealed?

Across the country, 29.8 million people would lose their health insurance if the Affordable Care Act were repealed—more than doubling the number of people without health insurance.