1-Year Anniversary of Health Reform Patient's Bill of Rights:
More Americans Insured, Better Care, Better Value

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Charles Rangel announced that new data released today from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that the Affordable Care Act has helped one million additional young adults to get health insurance.

“The Affordable Care Act is already improving the lives of America’s families, including one million young people who now enjoy health coverage,” Rangel said. "The numbers don't lie: The Act is already improving the lives of Americans, including young adults, children with pre-existing conditions, owners of small businesses, and seniors, along with all of the 165 million Americans who have private insurance. We know that the Affordable Care Act works."  

The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) found that in the first quarter of 2011, the percentage of adults between the ages of 19 and 25 with health insurance increased by 3.5 percentage points, representing approximately 1 million additional young adults with insurance coverage compared to a year ago. 

The Affordable Care Act includes a Patient’s Bill of Rights that allows most young adults to remain on their parents’ health plan until age 26 and prohibits insurers from dropping people from coverage when they get sick, placing lifetime limits on coverage and denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions.

The results from the CDC were also confirmed by a Gallup survey released today which found the number of uninsured adults age 18-25 dropped from 28% last fall to 24.2% this summer. Gallup concluded, “The provision of the Affordable Care Act that allows children up to the age of 26 to remain on their parents’ plans appears to be having an immediate effect on the number of Americans who report they have health insurance. Since it went into effect in September 2010, the percentage of 18- to 25-year-olds who report being uninsured has significantly declined by four percentage points.”

“The Affordable Care Act has put Americans and their families, not the health insurance companies, back in charge of their health care," Rangel stated. "Healthcare reform has already helped millions of Americans today and must be maintained.  It doesn't make sense that Republicans want to repeal healthcare reform and leave all these young Americans without insurance."

House Republicans voted unanimously on January 19, 2011 to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Repealing the Affordable Care Act would not only leave the one million young adults without insurance but also increase costs for millions on Medicare and leaves 10 million in New York alone vulnerable to life time limits.   

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Health Reform by the Numbers
 
1 million: The number of young adults who now have health insurance, thanks to the provision that allows young adults to stay a parent's health policy until their 26th birthday.    
            


1.3 million: The number of seniors who hit the gap in Medicare prescription coverage who are now receiving a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs.
 
1.3 million: The number of seniors who have already received a free Annual Wellness Visit.
 
17 million: The number of children who are now protected from insurers refusing to cover them because of a pre-existing condition.

19 million: The number of seniors who have already received one or more free preventive services.
 
165 million: The number of Americans getting better value for their health insurance dollar. Thanks to health reform, insurance companies must spend at least 80 percent of a beneficiary's premium dollar on health care, not overhead, advertising and bonuses.