President Joe Biden speaking on protecting and building on the Affordable Care Act (Photo/CNBC)
By Karen Stokes
Fourteen years ago, on March 23, 2010, former President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (ACA) into law, the landmark bill that is sometimes referred to as ‘Obamacare’.
This comprehensive healthcare reform law expanded healthcare to millions and is one of the most important pieces of legislation since Medicare and Medicaid.
“The ACA really changed the way that we have healthcare in this country. And one of the provisions of the ACA was to require health plans to cover preventive benefits. So whether you have employer sponsored coverage or other coverage under the Affordable Care Act marketplace,” said Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
During a speech in the final months of his presidency, former President Obama called the ACA, “a first step” and compared it to “buying a starter home …you hope that over time you make some improvements.”
Improvements have been made.
“Some of the changes of the ACA happened while the Biden-Harris Administration worked with Congress to make it even more affordable. I think that’s one of the reasons why we’ve seen record enrollment over the last couple of years,” said Brooks-LaSure. “There are almost 10 million more people that have been enrolled since the president took office and a large part of that has been an increase of affordability and more people are eligible thanks to the efforts of the administration. As well as more outreach efforts. We’ve devoted more focus on making sure that people know what their options are and are able to enroll.”
Former President Obama signing the Affordable Care Act into law
(Photo/obama.org)
The Biden-Harris Administration announced 21.3 million people selected an Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Marketplace plan during the 2024 Open Enrollment Period.
Total plan selections include more than five million people about a fourth who are new to the Marketplaces and 16 million people who renewed their coverage.
According to hhs.gov, in Wisconsin 266,327 enrolled in 2024.
“We’ve had record enrollment in Black and brown families and individuals enrolling in marketplace coverage and Medicaid is also an important safety net and now there are many more states that have expanded. Forty states have expanded coverage. Not yet in Wisconsin,” said Brooks-LaSure.
“Now Trump keeps telling us he’s going to terminate the ACA,” President Biden said. “Think about what that means. It would mean 100 million people Americans with preexisting conditions would lose their healthcare coverage. It would mean young people would be kicked off their parents’ coverage. Tens of millions of Americans would lose healthcare coverage as a consequence.”
“The President and Vice President Harris worked so hard to make sure that we’re working to make coverage more accessible, more affordable and you see that in the actions not only just the Affordable Care Act record enrollment but also the efforts in Medicare, allowing Medicare to negotiate better coverage for Medicare seniors and people with disabilities that depend on the program. That’s been a focus on the Administration, contraceptives coverage, reproductive health all areas that the Administration is fighting for,” said Brooks-LaSure.