Jasmine Matthews: Question #2: Why does ACA require individuals to purchase health insurance?

“The Affordable Care Act (ACA), signed into law in 2010, was designed to make health insurance coverage more affordable for Americans through the creation of tax subsidies, while also opening up Medicaid eligibility to more low-income individuals and families” (Investopedia, 2020). The ACA requires individuals to purchase health insurance according to the individual mandate. The individual mandate took effect on January 1, 2014. It is a requirement of the ACA that most citizens and legal residents of the United States have health insurance. People who do not have insurance must obtain or pay a fine unless they have an exemption for why they do not have insurance. The ACA encourages people to purchase health insurance when its available and not wait until they are already ill to avoid higher premiums.

References:

Ebiner, C., & Saltzman, E. (4 June 15). How does the ACA Individual Mandate affect enrollment and premiums in the individual insurance market? Retrieved from https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9812z4.html?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=in-text-link

Investopedia. (11 February 20). Is health insurance mandatory? Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/is-health-insurance-mandatory-4773106

UMGC. (n.d.). Week 8: ACA an overview. Retrieved from https://learn.umgc.edu/d21/le/content/49180/viewcontent/16962261/view

Jennifer Glockner posted

How does ACA help low-income individuals purchase insurance?

Health insurance on the individual market can be expensive and is therefore often out of reach for low-income individuals. The ACA allows states to voluntarily expand subsidized Medicaid coverage to workers earning the minimum wage and with household income below 138% of the poverty level. (Mulvey, 2014) To date, 37 states (including DC) have voluntarily expanded subsidized Medicaid coverage under the ACA. (KFF, 2020)

Reference:

Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) (2020, April 27) Status of State Medicaid Expansion Decisions: Interactive Map. Retrieved from, https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/status-of-state-medicaid-expansion-decisions-interactive-map/

Mulvey, J. (2014). Health Reform: What Small Businesses Need to Know Now! (4th ed.). CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

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