Supreme Court upholds the Affordable Care Act

Jeanne Lambrew
June 27, 2012
11:55 AM EDT

President Obama signed the health care law – the Affordable Care Act – into law on March 23, 2010 and it’s already making a positive difference in the lives of millions of Americans. We are already holding insurance companies accountable and ensuring middle class families have secure, affordable health insurance.

Thanks to the health care law:

• Preventive care --including mammograms for women and wellness visits – are available at no charge for everyone on Medicare.
• 54 million Americans gained better preventive service coverage through their private health insurance plans.
• By August 1, 12.8 million Americans will benefit from rebates provided by their insurance company because the company spent too much of their premium dollars on administrative costs or CEO bonuses.
• 6.6. million young adults were able to sign up for coverage on their parents’ plans, including 3.1 million young adults who would have been uninsured without the law.
• 5.3 million people with Medicare who hit the prescription drug donut hole saved $3.7 billion on their prescription drugs.
• Insurance companies can’t drop your coverage because you got sick and made a mistake on your application. Nearly 16 million Americans who purchase insurance in the individual market are no longer at risk of losing their insurance.
• Insurance companies can no longer limit the amount of coverage you can receive in a lifetime. Nearly 105 million privately insured American can now live with the security of knowing that their coverage will be there when they need it the most.

These are just some of the ways the law is already making a positive difference for the American people. And now, you can see the latest data about how the law is helping your state by visiting HealthCare.gov/center. There, you’ll find a map with links to state-by-state data and facts about how the law is improving our health care system.

For example, in my home state of Maine, more than 10,000 people will benefit from the rules that require insurance companies to provide their customers a rebate because they spent too much of your premiums on administrative costs or CEO bonuses. And 431,000 Mainers no longer have to worry about a lifetime limit being placed on their care.

Check out the map today and learn more about how the health care law is working where you live.

Jeanne Lambrew is the Deputy Assistant to the President for Health Policy.