As Congressional Republicans’ efforts to undermine Obamacare come to a temporary close, many remain stressed about how they’re going to get coverage in the coming years.
So, it’s important to understand where exactly our country stands on coverage now, and who has the potential to be affected by health care policy changes in the future.
The Breakdown
Here’s an infographic from Axios that breaks down how Americans are getting their health insurance.
The largest group, employer-based health care, has a combined total of 156 million citizens within the group. Citizens with employer-based health care are getting their coverage through their jobs. While this is good for people with stable and set career paths, depending on employer-based coverage can potentially be dangerous and unsustainable for a millennial generation that thrives on hopping from job to job.
However, there’s a combined total of 105.7 million Americans that have their insurance coverage through Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare covers adults 65 and older as well as younger people with disabilities, while Medicaid covers low-income people.
Republican efforts for Obamacare repeal would have directly impacted Medicaid. Some people think Medicaid spending is out of control, which is why Republicans have been trying to repeal Obamacare.
The Obamacare dilemma
On one hand, President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act made big, popular expansions to the government’s insurance safety net. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the Affordable Care Act caused 20 million Americans to become insured. The act also added benefits and cut costs within the existing Medicare and Medicaid programs.
On the other hand, Obamacare has been the root cause of premium increases that have since been out of control. A direct consequence of the ACA has been the rising cost of health insurance, which makes health care tougher to afford for those who don’t have employer-provided insurance.
The uninsured
An estimated total of 29 million people in the United States are still uninsured. Whether because they simply haven’t attempted to get coverage or because they fear the uncertain future of the Affordable Care Act, Americans set themselves up for serious financial and health disaster when they don’t enroll in insurance at all.
In 2017, the number of uninsured people has risen, meaning more people have been finding themselves close to financial calamity.
Takeaway
Health care has been a point of heated debate in our country recently, as questions have been constantly raised on how to make it more affordable, accessible and efficient.
Health care can seem like a complicated and confusing topic for many people, but it’s crucial to understand the basics and how choices in Congress can affect you. Changes to health care policy would impact a substantial portion of the American population, and when it comes to health care, it’s important that you keep track of changing policy.
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