President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress pursued several major efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) but were unable to get a bill through the U.S. Senate in 2017. In 2018, Congress did pass a tax bill that eliminated the ACA’s tax penalty for not obtaining health coverage beginning in 2019.
In December 2019, a federal appeals court panel ruled that the law’s individual mandate is unconstitutional since Congress has set the mandate tax penalty to zero and sent the case back to a lower court to determine how much of the rest of the ACA should be invalidated. The case was first brought by a number of Republican state attorneys general, and the Trump administration now argues that nearly all of the ACA should be overturned. The U.S. Supreme Court has now agreed to review the case.
For information about ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment, including fact sheets and 300+ FAQs, visit our collection of resources on Understanding Health Insurance.
Featured Affordable Care Act Resources
Potential Impact of Texas v. U.S. Decision on Key Provisions of the Affordable Care Act
On December 14, 2018, a federal trial court judge ruled that the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) individual mandate is unconstitutional and that the entire law should be struck down as a result. This brief considers the complex and far-reaching impact were the entire law ultimately held to be invalid.
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Related Affordable Care Act Resources
- Explaining Texas v. U.S.: A Guide to the Case Challenging the ACA
- The Past, Present, And Possible Future Of Public Opinion On The Affordable Care Act
- Republican Voters Have Moved On from Hating the ACA
- The Effects of Medicaid Expansion under the ACA: Updated Findings from a Literature Review
- FAQs: Health Insurance Marketplace and the ACA
- Status of State Medicaid Expansion Decisions: Interactive Map
- How ACA Marketplace Premiums Are Changing by County in 2020
- Insurer Participation on ACA Marketplaces, 2014-2020
- Pre-Existing Condition Prevalence for Individuals and Families
- Preventive Services Tracker
Eligibility for ACA Health Coverage Following Job Loss
As unemployment claims skyrocket amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, this analysis examines the potential loss of job-based coverage among people in families where someone lost employment between March 1 and May 2 and estimate their eligibility for ACA coverage as of May and January 2021, when most will have exhausted their unemployment benefits.
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Quantifying Tax Credits for People Now Buying Insurance on Their Own
This analysis estimates that Americans currently buying insurance on the individual market would receive $2700 in subsidies (as tax credits) in 2014 under Obamacare. Tax credits are available for qualifying people buying insurance through the new health care marketplaces, or exchanges.
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Quality of Care in Community Health Centers and Factors Associated with Performance
This study examines quality among health centers relative to Medicaid managed care organizations (MCOs). Chronic care quality among health centers is high; gaps in women’s preventive care are a concern. Lower-performing health centers have very high uninsured and homeless rates. The expansion of Medicaid and private insurance under the ACA may foster gains in health center quality performance.
Issue Brief Read MoreHow Obamacare May Be Holding Down Costs
In his latest column published in Politico, Kaiser President and CEO Drew Altman examines the recent historic slowdown in health-care costs and discusses whether Obamacare is a contributing factor.
Perspective Read MoreProviding Outreach and Enrollment Assistance: Lessons Learned from Community Health Centers in Massachusetts
As states and communities gear up to provide outreach and enrollment assistance under the ACA, the enrollment assistance experience of health centers in Massachusetts, where a major expansion of health coverage was implemented six years ago, offers valuable lessons that can help to inform current and emerging efforts by health centers and other community-based organizations to reach and enroll millions of low-income, uninsured Americans in health insurance.
Issue Brief Read MoreJAMA Forum: Why Obamacare Needs Millennials
Larry Levitt’s July 2013 column on why the Affordable Care Act is targeting young people is now available on The JAMA Forum.
Perspective Read MoreHealth Coverage and Care for American Indians and Alaska Natives
This brief provides an overview of health coverage and care for American Indians and Alaska Natives today and the potential implications of the ACA coverage expansions.
Issue Brief Read MoreObamacare y Usted: Si tiene bajos ingresos y puede calificar para Medicaid
Obamacare crea muchas formas de obtener cobertura de salud. Usted puede aprender sobre sus opciones llenando una única aplicación. Así, se le dirá si califica para cobertura gratis o a bajo costo a través del programa Medicaid, o a través de los nuevos Mercados de Seguros Médicos que han sido…
Fact Sheet Read MoreObamacare y Usted: Si tiene seguro médico a través de un empleador
Si usted tiene cobertura de beneficios de salud a través de su empleador o del empleador de un miembro de su familia, usted probablemente pueda mantener esa cobertura y no tener que hacer ningún cambio. En la mayoría de los casos, la cobertura de su empleador satisface los requerimientos de…
Fact Sheet Read MoreThe Federal Courts’ Role in Implementing the Affordable Care Act
This issue brief examines the federal courts’ role to date in interpreting and affecting implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), with a focus on the provisions that seek to expand access to affordable coverage.
Issue Brief Read MoreAn Overview of Medicaid Incentives for the Prevention of Chronic Diseases (MIPCD) Grants
This brief provides an overview of the Medicaid Incentives for the Prevention of Chronic Diseases (MIPCD) grants and highlights key findings from the interim evaluation of the program. The brief also places these grants in context of pre-Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid beneficiary incentive programs and proposed programs of states that are incorporating healthy behavior incentives into Medicaid expansion waivers.
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