More than 49 million in US covered by ACA over the past decade

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Reuters

September 10, 2024 9:57 AM EDT Updated 6 hours ago


NEW YORK, Sept 10 (Reuters) - One in seven Americans have signed up for health insurance coverage through Affordable Care Act marketplaces since their 2014 launch, according to data released on Tuesday by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. A total of 49.4 million Americans have signed up for the plans, often referred to as Obamacare, with enrollment reaching a high of 20.8 million people in 2024, the agency said.

The insurance plans, run by companies including CVS Health's Aetna (CVS.N) and UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N), provide income-based subsidies and are sold on the federally-run Healthcare.gov website or are offered directly by states that run their own sites. Marketplace coverage since 2014 has been higher in states that have not expanded Medicaid programs under the ACA or did so later, the report said.

Typically, people with annual incomes between 100% and 138% of the poverty level - currently set by the government at $15,060 for individuals and $31,200 for a family of four - are covered by the ACA Marketplace in non-expansion states, versus Medicaid in expansion states.

Florida, Utah and Georgia, for instance, topped marketplace enrollment by percent of population with an average of 20% of residents, compared with 12% of residents in states that expanded Medicaid coverage. Data cited in the release was collected by the Internal Revenue Service from tax forms and other sources. The average cost of premiums for a year of enrollment in a marketplace health plan fell to $800 through the Biden administration's four years, a senior administration official said.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/more-than-49-million-us-covered-by-aca-over-past-decade-2024-09-10/

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Link to Department of Treasury PRESS RELEASE - U.S. Department of the Treasury Releases New Data Showing Nearly 50 Million Americans Have Been Covered Through Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Marketplaces Since 2014

[Lemonwurst]

1. Shout it from the rooftops

The ACA isn't what every other 1st world country has to offer, but given our situation, it at least shows where we should be headed.

Did they actually mention the annual cost went DOWN under Biden? Well, there's something you'll never hear on TV.

[bmichaelh]

2. ACA saved me life

I was diagnosed in lymphoma in 1990.

I was in my second remission when ACA was passed in 2010 and its failed repeal in 2017.

In 2019, it returned.
I went through 4 failed treatments over 2 years; the fifth was a success.
I am in my third remission; 2 years since last August.

There are features of the law that has nothing to do with subsides that saves life; no lifetime limits.
Since cancer treatments are expensive; complete cycles of treatments can run into 100,000s if not 1,000,000s.

One presidential ticket tried to repeal the ACA.
One presidential ticket (both Harris and Walz) voted against the repeal.

[progree]

3. The ACA gets quite a lot more expensive for many beginning in 2026 unless Congress/president acts

Thanks to the Biden-Harris administration, a lot of middle class people got a considerable premium reduction.

https://www.healthinsurance.org/obamacare/beware-obamacares-subsidy-cliff/

For the first several years after the health insurance Marketplaces/exchanges debuted for 2014 coverage, the premium subsidy (premium tax credit) eligibility range was capped at household incomes of 400% of the federal poverty level (FPL). People with incomes above 400% of FPL were on their own when it came to paying for health insurance.

But that temporarily ended as of 2021, thanks to the American Rescue Plan’s provision that eliminates the “subsidy cliff.” And although that provision was scheduled to expire at the end of 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) extended it through 2025. So the subsidy cliff has been eliminated for the time being. (Congress would have to act again to prevent the subsidy cliff from returning in 2026.)

The initial assumption, when the ACA was being drafted in the late aughts, was that when incomes are above 400% of the poverty level, health insurance would be affordable (as a percentage of household income) without the need for a subsidy. But that did not prove to be the case in many areas of the country, particularly for older enrollees. Fortunately, this problem has been temporarily fixed, at least through 2025.

. . . . American Rescue Plan and Inflation Reduction Act: No subsidy cliff from 2021 through 2025

Section 9661 of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) simply caps marketplace health insurance premiums (for the benchmark plan) at no more than 8.5% of household income. This applies to people with household incomes of 400% of the poverty level or higher; for people with lower incomes, the normal percentage of income that has to be paid for the benchmark premium has been reduced across the board. This provision was initially applicable for 2021 and 2022, but the Inflation Reduction Act has extended it through 2025.

I was just wondering, I remember reading about the 8.5% max thing and that it was going away sometime unless Congress acted to extend it and Felonious Maximus doesn't become president.