It’s hard to write about anything else today with news from The Supreme Court: the decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act. As a pediatrician and mom this isn’t about politics for me. It’s about the assurance that pediatric patients (my children included) can get the care they need. And that we work to make care affordable. Below are a few thoughts & quotes that have helped me understand how the decision will affect care for our children in the United States.
First off, more children will have access to health care. Children will maintain insurance for longer periods of time. And children who have congenital and chronic health conditions won’t lose their care. The majority ruling preserves key child health provisions including the law’s protections against pre-existing condition exclusions. Dr Robert Block, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics said:
Since the Affordable Care Act took effect, millions of children with pre-existing conditions gained health care coverage; 14 million children with private insurance received preventive health services with no co-pay; and 3.1 million more young adults gained coverage through their parents’ plans. These are just a few of the law’s investments in child health, with many more set to take effect over the next few years as affirmed by today’s decision.
I really appreciated this one paragraph explanation of the individual mandate from the SCOTUSBlog (via The Atlantic):
In Plain English: The Affordable Care Act, including its individual mandate that virtually all Americans buy health insurance, is constitutional. There were not five votes to uphold it on the ground that Congress could use its power to regulate commerce between the states to require everyone to buy health insurance. However, five Justices agreed that the penalty that someone must pay if he refuses to buy insurance is a kind of tax that Congress can impose using its taxing power. That is all that matters. Because the mandate survives, the Court did not need to decide what other parts of the statute were constitutional, except for a provision that required states to comply with new eligibility requirements for Medicaid or risk losing their funding. On that question, the Court held that the provision is constitutional as long as states would only lose new funds if they didn’t comply with the new requirements, rather than all of their funding.
I hope to understand more about the frustrations people have with the Affordable Care Act, too — especially as they relate to pediatric care.
What did today’s decision mean to your family? Will your children have improved access to health care? Did you feel a sense of relief? Did you feel the opposite?
BookMama says
My immediate family is lucky enough to have very good employer-provided insurance through my job. However, my teen cousin and my toddler nephew both have congenital heart defects that have required open-heart surgeries (and will likely require additional surgery). The ban on pre-existing exclusions and the ban on lifetime benefit caps will likely benefit both of them at some point in their lifetimes.
Catherine Nelson says
Children live in less stressful, healthier environments when their parents have health insurance and are able to get care for their medical conditions. The ACA will create healthier parents which is good for kids!
Jenny says
Several years ago, one of my nieces was hit by a car in Chicago while attending college there and, for a variety of reasons, it was a financial nightmare for her parents, who were battling insurance companies while worrying about her recovery at the same time. The fact that they lived thousands of miles away in another state didn’t help. With the ACA, she is now relieved to know that her younger sister will be covered by her parents’ insurance if anything should happen to her while she’s attending an out-of-state college.
I’m astonished that affordable, accessible health care should even be an issue in our country. While those who oppose the current law have some valid concerns regarding the costs to taxpayers, I personally am happy to pay more in taxes to ensure basic health care for everyone, especially children. The fact is, there is no one perfect plan, and until that perfect plan ever gets created (and voted on), I’m glad that we have something in place to protect our more vulnerable citizens (which includes the majority of American families in this economic downturn).
D says
I’m so grateful this was upheld. My family is blessed with great insurance, but I’m relieved that the US is slowly lurching towards healthcare for all, regardless of employment status.
Crystal says
We were on board with this act until it did nothing to help protect us. Our daughter had RSV at 2 weeks of age and spent a week in the hospital. When we went to apply for health insurance due to a job change, we were told that because of this hospitalization, we would be charged an additional $205/month on top of the original quoted price. The insurance company said that it was not an increased amount because of a “pre-existing condition” (as it didn’t fall under that definition), but due to the fact that she is at a higher risk of future hospitalizations. I would hate to see how much more they charge someone with an illness/condition that truly does require regular hospital stays 🙁
Maria says
The bottom line with the ACA is it is the right thing to do. Forget the idea if it does not affect you (or benefit you) it is not important or wrong. Leave the egos and politics aside and concentrate on those who need assistance, many of those who are not able to speak for themselves. I have insurance it is great? No. But I was not forced into financial hardship when I has to utilize it, nor do I feel hesitant to seek care, which is often the case for those who do not have insurance. We need to make care affordable for all.