Friday, September 26, 2014

OBAMACARE: THE YOUNG AND THE POOR


Is it time to change the name of Obamacare now that it seems to be a success.  Remember when it was said that young people wouldn't sign up?  Well they have, dramatically so.*
"The uninsured rate for people ages 19 to 64 declined from 20 percent in the July-to-September 2013 period to 15 percent in the April-to-June 2014 period. An estimated 9.5 million fewer adults were uninsured. Young men and women drove a large part of the decline: the uninsured rate for 19-to-34-year-olds declined from 28 percent to 18 percent, with an estimated 5.7 million fewer young adults uninsured. By June, 60 percent of adults with new coverage through the marketplaces or Medicaid reported they had visited a doctor or hospital or filled a prescription; of these, 62 percent said they could not have accessed or afforded this care previously."**

"The findings suggest that the Affordable Care Act is beginning to achieve its central goal—reducing the number of Americans who are uninsured, and improving access to health care," [Commonwealth Fund Vice President] Collins  said. "Adults who are being helped the most are those who historically have had the greatest difficulty affording health insurance and getting the care they need."**

*Obamacare and the poor: http://www.cnbc.com/id/101823365; Medicaid expansion: http://www.cnbc.com/id/101715324
** http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2014/jul/Health-Coverage-Access-ACA

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