A Decade of ACA: The Successes, Unfinished Work, and Impact of the Affordable Care Act

Abstract

Since being signed into law on March 23rd of 2010 by President Barack Obama, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has prevailed as one of the most transformative pieces of social and economic legislation in history. It has increasingly expanded access to care, corrected widespread abuses and inequities in the health insurance markets, improved the quality of care people receive, enhanced preventative care, and launched new healthcare and payment systems. But even so, the ACA has faced considerable political opposition. After almost a decade of highs and lows, we now know that the ACA has benefitted people’s health and our economy, that there is still unfinished work to be pursued to achieve full access and equity, and most importantly, that the American people now have an expectation that their government will provide access to quality affordable healthcare regardless of their economic situation. To create a clear view of where the ACA is today and where it is headed into the future, we will look at the law’s successes, what still needs to be accomplished, and how the ACA has profoundly changed the landscape of healthcare access in America.