“To sum it up…”
- The house bill number for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is H.R.3590
- The bill’s sponsor was Representative Charles Rangel, a Democrat from New York
- The bill became law when then President Barak Obama signed it on March 23, 2010
- The purpose of the ACA was to provide every American with affordable healthcare and reduce spending in government healthcare programs
- At the time, nearly 44 million Americans did not have health insurance. Insurance companies could deny people coverage for pre-existing conditions
House Bill H.R. 3590
The primary purpose of the Affordable Care Act was to expand health insurance to Americans who were too poor to afford private health insurance yet made too much money to qualify for state-sponsored health insurance, known as Medicaid. In addition, the bill targeted insurance companies that could drop participants for being sick or those who reached annual or lifetime limits.
Provisions in the bill also prevented insurance companies from unjustified premium hikes. At the time, there were no limits on how much insurance companies could raise a participant’s premiums.
Enter your zip code above to compare free health insurance quotes for private plans that meet the individual mandate.
The ACA and Consumer Insurance Protection
In 2010, many laws under the Affordable Care Act took effect to protect consumers from the predatory habits of some insurance companies. The law prohibited lifetime monetary caps and limited the amount of annual caps insurance companies could place on policyholders.
The ACA also prohibited insurance plans from rejecting dependents with pre-existing conditions. The law included a provision requiring a state-based review on any “unreasonable” premium hikes.
As of 2014, insurance companies could no longer exclude any American with a pre-existing condition.
Expanding Health Insurance Availability to Americans
The bill at the time wanted to expand the available health insurance coverage to nearly 32 million Americans. The goal was to increase coverage options through both the private and public sectors. On Jan. 1, 2014, significant provisions under the ACA were enacted to accomplish health insurance expansion:
- The ACA required employers to provide insurance for their employees or face penalties. The law established tax credits for small businesses who paid a portion of their employee’s medical expenses.
- The law established tax credits for small businesses who paid a portion of their employee’s medical expenses.
- The ACA required the creation of state-based health insurance marketplaces, known as exchanges, offering affordable health insurance to individuals and companies.
- The law limited the amount insurance companies could charge in premiums. Federal subsidies limited the cost of premiums to 2 percent of incomes for individuals whose incomes were at 133 percent of the poverty level.
- The law limited the amount insurance companies could charge in premiums. Federal subsidies limited the cost of premiums to 2 percent of incomes for individuals whose incomes were at 133 percent of the poverty level.
Obamacare: The Individual Mandate
In 2014, the Affordable Care Act required that all Americans hold “minimum essential coverage.” Under the law at the time, Americans who did not have a health insurance policy would pay a tax of 1 percent of income or $95, whichever is greater. The tax is known as the individual mandate or penalty.
In 2016 and 2017, the fee increased to 2.5 percent of household income or $695 per adult and $347.50 per child. The maximum penalty anyone would pay is $2,085.
The premise behind the individual mandate was to help pay for any future coverage or any emergency services individuals needed if they did not have coverage.
An Emphasis on Prevention and Wellness
One of the goals of the Affordable Care Act, aside from expanding coverage availability, was to put an emphasis on the prevention of illness and promoting overall wellness.
In 2010, the ACA established a Prevention and Public Health Fund, which would give grants to states to promote health and wellness activities such as immunizations and screenings for diseases.
In 2010, the ACA also required health insurance companies to stop cost sharing on preventive care costs. The provisions under the ACA prevented insurance companies from cost sharing for preventive measures such as screening for high blood pressure, cholesterol, cancer, and diabetes. The provisions also stopped cost sharing on preventive care for children.
Ease Rising Health Care Costs
The Affordable Care Act intended to ease the rising costs of health insurance premiums by providing more government oversight on insurance companies. The ACA also added provisions to help individuals effectively comparison shop by enacting the state-sponsored exchanges.
The idea of the exchanges and comparison shopping was to promote price transparency and increase competition among insurance companies. Other provisions to help reduce rising health care costs included implementing new Medicare and Medicaid payment models and testing new support and delivery systems.
However, the Patient Prevention and Affordable Care Act’s timeline for full healthcare reform may be in jeopardy as President Trump and the House and Senate Republicans have made no secret about their intentions to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
If you want to find coverage outside of the Obamacare Marketplace, enter your zip code below to compare free health insurance quotes from private providers.