Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

October 16th, 2009

In early 2010, Congress passed a law called the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that drastically changed the landscape of health care in the United States. The law created many new provisions and statues relating to medical coverage, insurance, and Medicaid, and levied several new taxes in order to pay for them. It aimed to cover the nearly 46 million Americans that do not have health insurance and to mend the seemingly broken health care delivery system. These provisions will begin to take shape over the next four years, becoming fully integrated into the health care system by 2014.

One of the greatest provisions of the PPAC Act is related to expanding Medicaid coverage. Effective Jan. 1, 2014, individuals that earn an income of up to 133 percent of the poverty line can qualify for Medicaid coverage. This also includes adults without dependent children. Effective Sept. 23, 2010, Medicare coverage will be expanded to include small, rural hospitals and medical facilities. The Act also prohibits health insurance companies from dropping patients once they become ill, or have preexisting conditions. In the past, the discrimination against patients with preexisting conditions led insurance companies to deny roughly 132 million Americans suffering from chronic illnesses. Also, with such provisions as providing incentive to business to provide health care benefits for employees and subsidizing insurance premiums, the estimated number of insured Americans will increase by 32 million by 2014. This increase will likely create a major demand for medical professionals and nurses, especially those trained in primary care. The law does, however, exclude illegal immigrants from reaping the benefits of subsidy programs.

The health care provisions laid out in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will be paid for with various taxes, fees, and cost-savings techniques. This includes a new tax on indoor tanning, Medicare taxes for high-income brackets and additional fees for medical equipment and pharmaceutical companies. Also, the law mandates that those citizens who do not receive or purchase medical coverage will be subjected to a penalty of $695 per year. These money making and saving tactics are estimated to reduce the national deficit by over $100 billion in the first decade.

Many Americans are divided on the issues of health care coverage and reform. While medical care for the masses is a noble ideal, some critics believe these issues should be handled by the states or should be decided upon by individuals.

Did you enjoy this article?