Affordable Care Act doing many good things

To the editor,

It’s telling that Republicans feel they must distort the facts about the Affordable Care Act, calling it “Obamacare” and making up stories of fictional “death panels” and “rationing boards.” It appears Republicans are afraid that if they stuck to just the facts everyone would be for it. That is everyone except the insurance companies, who spent millions in campaign contributions and TV ads to fight it. Now the Affordable Care Act requires insurance companies to spend at least 80 percent of premiums to actually pay medical claims, or else return our money via rebates, added benefits or by reducing future premiums.

The ACA requires insurance companies to insure all applicants and offer the same rates regardless of pre-existing conditions or gender and bans them from cancelling policies because a person becomes ill. Insurance companies are now prohibited from imposing lifetime dollar limits on essential benefits, like hospital stays. Young adults are now allowed to stay on their parent’s plan until they turn 26 years old.

The ACA provides tax credits to make it easier for the middle class to afford insurance. The tax credit is advanceable, so it can lower premium payments each month.

People with Medicare Part D now get savings on covered brand-name and generic drugs while in the coverage gap (until the gap is closed altogether in 2020).

In Michigan, we were smart enough to adopt ACA’s Medicaid expansion. Those who earn less than 133 percent of the poverty level (approximately $16,000 for an individual and $33,000 for a family of four) are now eligible to enroll in Medicaid. The plan is available to residents ages 19 to 64 who are not currently eligible for Medicaid or Medicare. It is expected that 320,000 Michigan residents will be covered this year and 470,000 will be covered by 2021, and Michigan’s uninsured population will drop by about 46 percent. Michigan hospitals provide more than $880 million dollars of care a year to uninsured patients unable to pay. These costs have ended up being shifted to people who have insurance, and taxpayers. Reducing the number of uninsured will help all of us.

Recent polls show most Americans support the individual provisions of the ACA yet many still say that they oppose “Obamacare.” It appears some of the Republican distortions are still working but people are beginning to catch on.

Al Warren

Ewen