Tuesday, March 8, 2016
WSJ Op-ed by Commonwealth Fund President Notes Potential Fallout to Repealing the ACA
The initial National Health Interview Survey results published last month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirm what many private surveys have shown: that the proportion of Americans under 65 who lack health insurance has plummeted to record lows since the Affordable Care Act became law. Twenty million fewer Americans were uninsured in the first nine months of 2015 than in 2010. The proportion of Americans with private coverage stands at 65.9%, the highest level since 2007.
Critics of Obamacare say this new insurance isn’t worth much. Its deductibles and co-pays are often high, some charge; many of the newly insured have public coverage through Medicaid, which some say is inadequate. Consider, however, that the CDC data also show that fewer Americans are missing out on needed care because of cost, and that last year more Americans had a usual source of care than in 2010. In particular, surveys show that people with Medicaid are getting much better care than people who remain uninsured. . .