Congress’ approval of a healthcare reform bill on March 21 and a companion bill of “fixes” on March 25 mark the first major healthcare overhaul since Medicare was made a law in 1965.
President Barack Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law on March 23 and was to sign the companion Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 shortly after Healthcare Finance News went to press. Together, the new laws call for changes to American healthcare to be implemented over the next four years.
According to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the laws will make healthcare coverage available to 32 million uninsured Americans and establish healthcare exchanges where consumers can purchase healthcare insurance at a lower rate. She also said the new laws would “hold health insurance companies accountable.”
Some of the changes, including a temporary national high-risk pool to provide health coverage to individuals with pre-existing medical conditions, will take effect this year. They include a provision to allow dependent coverage for adult children up to age 26 and a prohibition on individual and group health plans placing lifetime limits on the dollar value of coverage.
The reform package was passed by a vote of 219-212 in the House, with every Republican and 34 Democrats voting against it.
The Congressional Budget Office says the law would reduce the federal deficit by $143 billion through 2019.
“This is what change looks like,” Obama said shortly after the Sunday night vote. He called the new law major reform, not radical reform.
“Tonight’s vote is not a victory for any one party,” he added. “It’’s a victory for the American people and for common sense.”
The president has since launched a nationwide tour to educate Americans about healthcare reform.
Republicans say the plan will saddle the nation with unaffordable levels of debt, leave states with expensive new obligations, weaken Medicare and give the government a huge new role in the healthcare system. The House Republican leader, Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, said the vote defies the wishes of Americans who ‘are angry’ with Congress.
Richard Umbdenstock, president and CEO of the American Hospital Association, called the vote “a historic and long overdue step” that will make “a real difference in the lives of millions of Americans.”
“Healthcare is at a tipping point and the shortcomings within our healthcare system can no longer be ignored,” he said.