Republican opponents of health care reform rarely miss an opportunity to bash the Affordable Care Act, so many were quick to use the one-year anniversary yesterday of the act as another chance to criticize reform, never mind the obvious need for the millions of Americans who cannot afford or qualify for insurance. The smarter, more accurate way to look at the ACA is to note the protections from insurance industry abuse that the act has already put in place, and the other valuable reforms and benefits that will come when the act is fully implemented in 2014.
Americans who care about the sustainability and affordability of their health care insurance have good reason to appreciate the reforms already in place, and good reason to wonder what, precisely, Republicans would offer to replace the Affordable Care Act if they managed to keep their promise to “repeal and replace” the bill and lift their silence on a plan of their own. Where is it?
The protections implemented so far include:
* Elimination of the insurance industry’s denial of insurance to children with so-called pre-existing conditions.
* Extension of family coverage to dependent children up to the age of 26.