Way #9: Doctor Choice and ER Access  Some of the significant health care reforms are the simple things – like being able to choose your primary care provider, or not worrying about out-of-network fees when you’re away from home and have to go to the emergency room. Those reforms are part of the rights and protections now guaranteed by...

  Way #8: Insurance ProtectionsWhen we get sick, we expect our insurance to be there for us. That’s why we buy insurance. However, before the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Wisconsinites could find themselves without care when they needed it the most. These insurance protections lift a great burden off of families, who can now be confident...

Way #7: Provider Payment Reforms and Care CoordinationThe Affordable Care Act (ACA) has given a big boost to efforts to fundamentally change the health care business model to reward quality and efficiency. The ACA has accelerated and expanded efforts to move away from “fee-for-service” medicine, where providers are paid directly for...

 Way #6: Benefits for Seniors Grandparents and other older adult relatives and friends are an important part of family life in Wisconsin. They share stories with us and act as caregivers and playmates to their grandchildren. To continue fulfilling these important roles in our communities, it is important that seniors stay in their best...

Way #5: Increased Accountability and Transparency on Insurance Costs Wisconsin families are benefiting in two major ways from the increased accountability and transparency in our health care system brought about by the Affordable Care Act (ACA): (1) the “Medical Loss Ratio” (MLR); and (2) rate review requirements. The ACA requires...

Way #4: Preexisting Condition Protections for ChildrenFor parents like Tracy, whose 9-year-old son Sami has a genetic disorder, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) means she can focus on her child’s care instead of his insurance coverage. Because of his condition, Sami has greater—and much more expensive—health care needs than most kids....

Way #3: No-Cost Preventive Care Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), many recommended preventive care services, such as mammograms and colon screenings, are covered at no cost to patients – no co-payments, no deductibles, no co-insurancePreventive care is key to optimizing health outcomes by identifying health problems early. However,...

Way #2: Coverage for Young AdultsWhereas the benefit we featured yesterday, Maintenance of Effort, was an important but seldom talked about features of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), #2 is one of the ACA’s most widely supported provisions. And with good reason! Young adults have traditionally been the least likely population to have...

As we wait anxiously for the Supreme Court to issue their decision on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), we know that children and families in Wisconsin are already benefiting from the law. It is important to recognize these ways in which the ACA is already making an impact and what could be lost if the Court strikes down the whole law....

One of the notable successes of the federal health care reform law was highlighted by data released last Friday. New Gallup polling results from spring 2012 vividly illustrate the effectiveness of that law (the Affordable Care Act, or ACA) in reducing the number of uninsured young adults, even while broader trends in the insurance...