More than a decade after its enactment, tens of millions of people nationwide rely on coverage options created through the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA). The law has survived multiple court challeges at the U.S. Supreme Court and repeated attempts by Republicans in Congress to repeal it. Subsequent legislation has scaled back some aspects of the law and expanded others, including by the COVID-19 relief bill, the American Response Plan Act of 2021. This page highlights relevant analysis about the ACA and proposed and enacted changes to it..
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 Costs and Impact of Health Provisions in the Build Back Better Act
A summary of 10 of the major health coverage and financing provisions of the current Build Back Better Act, with discussion of the potential implications for people and the federal budget.
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Related Affordable Care Act Resources
- 5 Charts About Public Opinion on the Affordable Care Act
- A Closer Look at the Uninsured Marketplace Eligible Population Following the American Rescue Plan Act
- Eligibility for ACA Health Coverage Following Job Loss
- Pre-Existing Condition Prevalence for Individuals and Families
- Building on the Evidence Base: Studies on the Effects of Medicaid Expansion, February 2020 to March 2021
- FAQs: Health Insurance Marketplace and the ACA
- Explaining Health Care Reform: Questions About Health Insurance Subsidies
- Status of State Medicaid Expansion Decisions: Interactive Map
- Preventive Services Tracker
- Tracking Section 1332 State Innovation Waivers
How Marketplace Costs and Premiums will Change if Rescue Plan Subsidies Expire
In this Policy Watch we explore the potential impact of the expiration of the American Rescue Plan Act’s enhanced financial help and new eligibility for the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance Marketplace federal subsidies. While the COVID-19 relief legislation passed earlier this year provides greater subsidy assistance through 2022, Democrats in Congress are currently considering making the temporary federal help permanent or extending it as part of their planned budget reconciliation legislation.
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Amid the Coronavirus Crisis, President Trump and Democratic Nominee Joe Biden Offer Widely Different Views on Health Care
President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden hold widely divergent views on health issues, with the president’s record and response to the coronavirus pandemic likely to play a central role in November’s elections. A new KFF side-by-side comparison examines President Trump’s record and former Vice President Biden’s positions across a…
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A Year of Crisis: How COVID-19 Upended the Election’s Focus on Health Care Policy—Or Did It?
In this post, Ashley Kirzinger and Mollyann Brodie examine how the COVID-19 pandemic and other crises shook up the mix of issues voters care about without changing the 2020 presidential race’s core dynamic as a referendum on President Trump’s first term in office.
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Potential Health Policy Administrative Actions Under President Biden
This brief outlines the potential health policy actions that President Biden could take using executive authority, based on campaign pledges, and actions that would reverse or modify regulations or guidance issued by the Trump Administration.
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Medicaid Expansion Enrollment and Spending Leading up to the COVID-19 Pandemic
This issue brief analyzes enrollment and spending trends related to the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion ahead of the coronavirus pandemic and examines potential consequences of recent enrollment increases.
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Joe Biden’s New Health Care Agenda (and CMS’s Big Role In It)
With the Georgia runoff elections giving Democrats control of the U.S. Senate, Drew Altman discusses President-elect Biden’s potential health care agenda and suggests that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services could have an expanded role and that it may be time to rename it and elevate it to a cabinet agency.
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A Closer Look at the Remaining Uninsured Population Eligible for Medicaid and CHIP
This issue brief examines the characteristics of the remaining uninsured population who are eligible for Medicaid or CHIP.
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FAQs: Health Insurance Marketplace and the ACA
This list of more than 300 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) covers the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance Marketplace (aka exchange), individual mandate, open enrollment, premiums and more. It provides answers to questions about specific groups, such as young adults, smokers, the uninsured, and non-traditional households.
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KFF Health Tracking Poll – March 2022: Economic Concerns and Health Policy, The ACA, and Views of Long-term Care Facilities
This poll finds the public’s health care priorities for Congress focus on reducing out-of-pocket costs, and concerns over inflation and the economy are top of mind as voters begin to think about the November midterm elections. The poll also examines views of the ACA and nursing homes.
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Marketplace Insurers Denied Nearly 1 in 5 In-Network Claims in 2020, though It’s Often Not Clear Why
Healthcare.gov marketplace insurers denied nearly one out of every five claims (18%) submitted for in-network services in 2020, though why the denial rates are so high and the ultimate consequences for consumers are difficult to access from the publicly available data, a new KFF analysis finds. The Affordable Care Act…
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ACA’s Maximum Out-of-Pocket Limit Is Growing Faster Than Wages
This analysis finds that the ACA’s maximum out-of-pocket limit is likely to grow faster than wages and salaries, and is also expected to grow faster than the maximum out-of-pocket limit for Health Savings Account (HSA)-qualified health plans.
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