Report shows that 5.4 million people have obtained insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act
A new report released by the Urban Institute shows that 5.4 million people have received health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act. The controversial health care reform law has been the subject of contention since its passage in 2010. Opponents of the law have long argued that the law would make insurance coverage significantly more expensive, prohibiting people from acquiring the coverage they need. The report, however, suggests that the law may have been successful in its primary goal: Making insurance coverage more accessible to a wider range of people.
Many people enrolling in state exchanges found better insurance policies than what they had previously
The report’s aim is to determine how many people have acquired insurance coverage under the provisions of the Affordable Care Act. During the open enrollment period for health insurance exchanges, many people rushed to enroll for coverage. The report suggests that the majority of these people were swapping for better insurance policies, however. Notably, 5.4 million people that were previously uninsured obtained coverage through exchanges and insurance programs that were launched by the Affordable Care Act.
Uninsured rate has dropped by 2.7% throughout the US
An estimated 15.2% of Americans were uninsured during the first week of March this year, a 2.7% drop from the number of people without insurance coverage in September 2013. Altogether, 7.1 million people throughout the country obtained insurance coverage through the health care reform law, primarily through insurance exchanges built in every state. Approximately 3 million of these people enrolled for coverage through exchanges in March alone, just before the open enrollment period ended after March 31.
Many people have found coverage through expanded Medicaid programs
Medicaid programs in 26 states and the District of Columbia were expanded due to the provisions of the Affordable Care Act. These programs made insurance coverage more accessible to a wider range of people and contributed to expanding coverage to those that had previously lacked insurance coverage. The report suggests that the Affordable Care Act has largely been successful despite the controversy surrounding the law and the technical problems that have plagued insurance exchanges.