A HealthCare.gov FactSheet
THE TOP FIVE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
T he Affordable Care Act – the health care law – law gives hard working,
middle-class families the security they
deserve. The Affordable Care Act forces
insurance companies to play by the rules,
prohibiting them from dropping your
coverage if you get sick, billing you into
bankruptcy through annual or lifetime limits,
and, soon, discriminating against anyone
with a pre-existing condition. Signed into
law by President Obama in March 2010, the
Affordable Care Act will remove obstacles to
care that many African Americans
historically have faced and ensure that they
will have better access to stable, affordable
health insurance and high quality health
care suited to their needs. All Americans will
have the security of knowing that they don't
have to worry about losing coverage if they
change jobs. And insurance companies are
required to cover preventive care like
mammograms and other cancer screenings.
Here are five ways the Affordable Care Act
helps you:
1. Ban on discrimination based on
pre-existing conditions. It is illegal for
insurance companies to deny coverage to
children because of a pre-existing condition,
such as cancer, asthma, or diabetes. In
2014, insurers are banned from
discriminating against anyone with a
pre-existing condition. Already, qualifying
Americans who are uninsured due to a
pre-existing health condition have access to
affordable insurance through Pre-Existing
Condition Insurance Plans.
2. No lifetime dollar limits on claims.
The new health law ends lifetime dollar
limits on essential benefits and restricts
annual dollar limits until they are phased out
in 2014. Approximately 10.4 million African
Americans are now free from having to
worry about going without comprehensive
treatment for cancer and other chronic
diseases because of lifetime dollar limits.
The new law also restricts