READ/SHARE:
The Health Care Act FACTS...
Straight from the White House
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
To: Greg Jones' B4B
June 28, 2012
FACT SHEET:
The Affordable Care Act: Secure Health Coverage for the Middle Class
The Supreme Court's
decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act ensures hard-working, middle
class families will get the security they deserve and protects every
American from the worst insurance
company abuses. This law was also specifically designed to give States
the resources and flexibility they need to tailor their approach to
their unique needs. With the uncertainty about the Court’s decision
behind us, it’s now time to focus on implementing
this law in a smart and non-bureaucratic way that works for the middle
class.
Benefits and Protections for the Middle Class:
The Affordable Care Act includes numerous provisions to keep health
care costs
low, promote prevention, and hold insurance companies accountable. If
you’re one of the 250 million Americans who already have health care –
whether through private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid – the
Affordable Care Act is already making your coverage
more secure.
·
Insurance companies
no longer have unchecked power to cancel your policy, deny your child
coverage due to a pre-existing condition, or charge women more than men.
·
Over 86 million
Americans have gained from coverage of preventive care free of charge,
like mammograms for women and wellness visits for seniors.
·
Nearly 13 million
Americans will receive a rebate this summer because their insurance
company spent too much of their premium dollars on administrative costs
or
CEO bonuses.
·
The law has already
helped 5.3 million seniors and people with disabilities save an average
of over $600 on prescription drugs in the “donut hole” in Medicare
coverage.
·
The law’s provisions to strengthen and protect Medicare by fighting fraud will continue.
·
The law has helped
6.6 million young adults who have been able to stay on their parents’
plans until the age of 26, including 3.1 million young people who are
newly
insured.
If you are one of the 30
million Americans who don’t yet have health insurance, starting in 2014
this law will offer you an array of quality, affordable, private health
insurance plans to
choose from. If you need care, you will finally have the same
opportunity to get quality, affordable coverage as everyone else.
Coverage for Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions:
A major impact of the Court's decision is that 129 million people with
pre-existing conditions will have the security of affordable health
coverage. Starting in 2014, insurance companies can no longer charge
you more, carve out benefits, or deny you coverage altogether because
you have cancer or diabetes or simply because you
are a woman. To make these protections affordable, people with and
without pre-existing conditions should be insured, since everyone at
some time needs health care.
Tax Credits for Middle Class Families and Small Businesses:
Millions of Americans will soon be eligible for tax credits to ensure
that their health insurance is affordable. Under today’s ruling, having
health insurance is and will continue to be a choice. If you can’t
afford insurance or you’re a small business that wants to provide
affordable insurance to your employees, you’ll get
tax credits that make coverage affordable. But starting in 2014, if
you can afford insurance and you choose not to purchase it, the
taxpayers will no longer subsidize your care for free. The Court’s
ruling today allows Congress to hold the projected 1% of
Americans who will be able to afford health insurance but will choose
not to buy it responsible for that choice. Many small businesses are
already receiving tax credits so they can afford to offer quality health
care to their employees. To date, 360,000
businesses that employ 2 million workers have already benefitted from
the small business tax cuts in the law. And once the Affordable Care
Act takes full effect, about 18 million individuals and families will
get tax credits for health insurance coverage
averaging about $4,000 apiece.
Support for State Implementation of Affordable Insurance Exchanges:
With the uncertainty of the Court decision behind us, we
will step up our work with States to implement Affordable Insurance
Exchanges. Exchanges are new marketplaces, starting in 2014, that will
allow individuals and small businesses to compare and choose private
health plans. Each State will take the lead in
designing its own menu of options. Already, 34 States including the
District of Columbia have received 100 percent Federally funded grants
to build Exchanges. The use of Exchange grants includes support for
activities related to running Exchanges in their
start-up year.
States can also
implement their own brand of reform through Innovation Waivers starting
in 2017. If States can come up with even better ways of covering people
at the same quality and low
cost, this law allows them to do so. The Administration supports
bipartisan legislation to allow States to start such Waivers in 2014.
Moving Forward, Not Back:
No political party has a monopoly on good ideas, and the President will
work with anyone to provide
basic security for middle class families and end the worst insurance
company abuses. But rather than refight old partisan battles by
starting over on health care and repealing basic protections that
provide security for the middle class, Congress needs to
work together to focus on the economy and creating jobs. Right now,
Congress should act on the President’s concrete plans to create an
economy built to last by reducing the deficit in a balanced way and
investing in education, clean energy, infrastructure,
and innovation.
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