Obama Healthcare Act COMPILATION OF PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT HEALTH-RELATED PORTIONS OF THE HEALTH CARE AND
EDUCATION RECONCILIATION ACT OF 2010

You can read the Affordable Care Act by visiting the links below. The health care law, sometimes known as "Obamacare," was signed March 23, 2010.

Read the full law

The law has 2 parts: the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act. We provide links to them in PDF and HTML formats below. We also provide a link to an unofficial, consolidated version that is more readable.
In all cases, the documents are searchable using the “Control + F” keys on your computer.

• Full Text of the Affordable Care Act and Reconciliation Act (PDF – 2.6 MB) This is not the official version, and we provide it for your convenience.

Official certified full-text of the laws in PDF form:

• Certified full-text version: Affordable Care Act (PDF – 2.41 MB)
• Certified full-text version: Reconciliation Act (PDF – 257 KB)

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - Obama Cares!

Former President Bill Clinton's full speech highlighting the benefits of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the health care reform law that the United States is just months away from rolling out, in an hour-long address at his Clinton Presidential Centre in Little Rock, AR.  

 Barack Obama Signs the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act, is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. Together with the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, it represents the most significant government expansion and regulatory overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system since the passage of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965.

The ACA is aimed at increasing the affordability and rate of health insurance coverage for Americans, and reducing the overall costs of health care (for individuals and the government). It provides a number of mechanisms — including mandates, subsidies, and tax credits — to employers and individuals to increase the coverage rate and health insurance affordability. The ACA requires insurance companies to cover all applicants within new minimum standards, and offer the same rates regardless of pre-existing conditions or sex. Additional reforms aim to improve healthcare outcomes and streamline the delivery of health care. The Congressional Budget Office projected that the ACA will lower both future deficits and Medicare spending.

On June 28, 2012, the United States Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of most of the ACA in the case National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Overview

Provisions

• Guaranteed issue prohibits insurers from denying coverage to individuals due to pre-existing conditions, and a partial community rating requires insurers to offer the same premium price to all applicants of the same age and geographical location without regard to gender or most pre-existing conditions (excluding tobacco use).
• Minimum standards for health insurance policies are established.
• An individual mandate requires all individuals not covered by an employer sponsored health plan, Medicaid, Medicare or other public insurance programs (such as Tricare) to secure an approved private-insurance policy or pay a penalty, unless the applicable individual has a financial hardship or is a member of a recognized religious sect exempted by the Internal Revenue Service. The law includes subsidies to help people with low incomes comply with the mandate.
• Health insurance exchanges will commence operation in every state. Each exchange will serve as an online marketplace where individuals and small businesses can compare policies and buy insurance (with a government subsidy if eligible). In the first year of operation, open enrollment on the exchanges runs from October 1, 2013 to March 31, 2014, and insurance plans purchased by December 15, 2013 will begin coverage on January 1, 2014. In subsequent years, open enrollment will start on October 15 and end on December 7.
• Low-income individuals and families whose incomes are between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level will receive federal subsidies on a sliding scale if they purchase insurance via an exchange. Those from 133% to 150% of the poverty level will be subsidized such that their premium costs will be 3% to 4% of income. In 2013, the subsidy would apply for incomes up to $45,960 for an individual or $94,200 for a family of four; consumers can choose to receive their tax credits in advance, and the exchange will send the money directly to the insurer every month. Small businesses will be be eligible for subsidies.
• Medicaid eligibility expanded to include individuals and families with incomes up to 133% of the federal poverty level, including adults without disabilities and without dependent children. The law also provides for a 5% "income disregard", making the effective income eligibility limit for Medicaid 138% of the poverty level. Furthermore, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollment process is simplified. However, in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, the Supreme Court ruled that states may opt out of the Medicaid expansion, and several have done so.
• Reforms to the Medicare payment system are meant to promote greater efficiency in the healthcare delivery system by restructuring Medicare reimbursements from fee-for-service to bundled payments. Under the new payment system, a single payment is paid to a hospital and a physician group for a defined episode of care (such as a hip replacement) rather than individual payments to individual service providers. In addition, it has been asserted that the Medicare Part D coverage gap (commonly called the "donut hole") will shrink incrementally, closing completely by January 1, 2020.
• Businesses which employ 50 or more people but do not offer health insurance to their full-time employees will pay a tax penalty if the government has subsidized a full-time employee's healthcare through tax deductions or other means. This is commonly known as the employer mandate. In July 2013, however, this provision was unilaterally delayed for one year by President Obama.