The Affordable Care Act Turns Two
By Chris Stenrud, HHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
The President's health law gives hard working, middle-class families the security they deserve. The Affordable Care Act prohibits insurance companies from dropping your coverage if you get sick, billing you into bankruptcy through annual or lifetime limits, and, soon, discriminating against anyone with a pre-existing condition.
All Americans will have the security of knowing that they don't have to worry about losing coverage if they’re laid off or change jobs. And insurance companies are required to cover preventive care like mammograms and other cancer screenings without co-pays or deductibles.
The new health care law is already making a difference. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act:
- 2.5 million more young adults have health insurance on their parent’s plan.
- 5.1 million people with Medicare saved an average of $635 on the cost of their prescription drugs. And everyone on Medicare can get preventive services like mammograms for free.
- Insurance companies must spend at least 80% of your premium dollars on health care and not overhead. They can no longer raise your premiums by 10% or more without any accountability.
- It’s illegal for insurance companies to deny coverage to children because of a pre-existing condition. And in 2014, discriminating against anyone with a pre-existing condition will be illegal.
Read more about what the law means for hard working families in this new two-year report (PDF - 265 KB).