OBAMA CARE UPDATE: THE PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT (PPACA) of 2010

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), popularly referred to as Obamacare, is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. The law (along with the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010) is the principal health care reform legislation of the 111th United States Congress. PPACA requires individuals not covered by employer- or government-sponsored insurance plans to maintain minimal essential health insurance coverage or pay a penalty unless exempted for religious beliefs or financial hardship, a provision commonly referred to as the individual mandate. The Act also reforms certain aspects of the private health insurance industry and public health insurance programs, increases insurance coverage of pre-existing conditions, expands access to insurance to an additional 30 million Americans, and increases projected national medical spending while reducing the national deficit, slowing health care cost inflation, and lowering projected Medicare spending.

On Thursday, June 28, 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld all provisions of this health care law, with conservative republican Chief Justice John Roberts' majority opinion stating clearly that the law is a valid and proper exercise of Congress' power to tax.

Among the many provisions in the Law, the following 15 address the issue of health insurance company abuses:

1. The Law lets millions of young adults stay on parent's insurance until age 26.

2. The Law ends insurance company power to cap the amount of care a person can receive in their lifetime.

3. The Law stops insurance companies from canceling coverage when someone gets sick.

4. The Law lowers the cost of care for those on Medicare and helps seniors save money on their medication.

5. The Law requires insurance companies to cover preventive services like mammograms free of charge.

6. The Law strengthens and protects Medicare by increasing penalties for fraud.

7. The Law stops insurance companies from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions.

8. The Law ends insurance company power to jack up rates without justification.

9. The Law provides Americans with rebates from insurers who spend too much on CEO bonuses or ads.

10. The Law gives tax credits to small business owners so they can afford to offer quality health care for employees.

11. The Law builds and improves hundreds of community helath centers.

12. The Law gives hard-working Americans tax credits so they can afford insurance beginning in 2014.

13. The Law ends discrimination against adults with pre-existing conditions beginning in 2014.

14. The Law prevents insurance companies from charging women more than men, and overcharging those who need care the most beginning in 2014.

15. The Law creates state-based marketplaces where people can easily compare and shop for insurance beginning in 2014.

[see, My Tweets on Thursday, June 28, 2012; "Attorney Charles Ware's Blog", Thursday, June 28, 2012; "The Lawyer's Mailbox" blog, Thursday June 28, 2012; U.S. Supreme Court case opinion: National Federation of Independent Business, et al. v. Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, et al., October Term, 2011, U.S. Sup. Ct., No. 11-393 (June 28, 2012)]