Co-Authored by George Lyford
Today marks the one-year anniversary of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). In that year, we have already seen thousands of Nebraskans begin to benefit from some of the reform measures that went into place last September.
FamiliesUSA recently released some new data on how the ACA is already helping people in Nebraska. They have found that:
- Over 15,000 young Nebraskans are eligible to stay on their parents insurance until they are 26.
- 26,000 Nebraska seniors received a prescription drug rebate check in 2010 to help them afford their medications when those seniors feel into Medicare’s “donut hole.”
- 277,400 Nebraska seniors now have access to free preventative health services.
- 32,300 Nebraska children with pre-existing conditions are protected from insurance denials and can get the health care they need.
- Over 33,000 Nebraska small businesses are eligible for tax credits to help them provide coverage to their employees.
Other protections under the ACA end lifetime caps on coverage, which is critical to our friends and family with critical illnesses like cancer, and require that insurance companies actually provide real value for your premium dollar by using 80-85% of your premiums to pay for actual medical care.
The ACA is making a difference every day in the lives of Nebraskans already. In the coming months and years, we will see countless more Nebraskans benefit from the many consumer protection, cost control, and quality improvement reforms under the ACA.