Insurance for pre-existing conditions
In the United States, until the Affordable Care (ACA) Act was enacted in 2010 most individual and group health plans excluded coverage of people with existing conditions. This meant that people with common health issues like high blood-pressure, allergies or asthma would pay higher premiums. They might also not be able get the insurance they want.
People with chronic diseases and injuries were particularly affected by this discrimination, making it hard to get affordable insurance. Historically, employees who worked for companies with 500+ employees could only purchase large group health plans to avoid discrimination.
The plans are more expensive and do not cover all services that people require, like preventive care or prescription drugs. They often also included lifetime limitations on benefits. In addition, many of these plans charged extremely high out-of-pocket costs for cancer treatments and other major medical expenses.
Prior to the ACA, a patient with a preexisting condition would have had to wait a certain amount of time before enrolling in a new health plan. This waiting period may range from six to twelve months, depending on state regulations and the type of insurance plan.
Lori was a 48-year old freelancer with a chronic condition of high blood pressure. She had it well controlled using two medications. She was unable to get affordable coverage until she purchased her own policy and began paying her monthly premiums. She was frustrated that she couldn't afford affordable health insurance and looked for a way to obtain more comprehensive coverage.
In the end, she enrolled in a Medicare Advantage Plan that included drug coverage and had no waiting period for her pre-existing conditions. She also paid an additional $2 per month for a prescription drug benefit that covered her meds.
Those who have preexisting conditions can still be denied or forced to pay higher premiums for insurance, but this is rare and only happens in very few cases. The ACA limits the amount of premiums that insurers can charge for people with preexisting health conditions. However, non-ACA compliant companies can still discriminate against them by excluding them from their policies and/or raising the rates to cover these people.
Coons suggests that the ACA provided preexisting condition protections to the more than 150 million Americans who get their health coverage through their place of employment, but this is not entirely true. HIPAA provided preexisting conditions protections for those with employer-sponsored insurance, but the ACA extended that to everyone who purchased their own coverage on the ACA market.
A Ca and existing conditions
The Affordable Healthcare Act is a significant law that helped millions of Americans gain affordable health care insurance. The law's provisions that prevent people with preexisting health conditions from being denied coverage are among the most popular. Republicans have tried to overturn the law several times in the Supreme Court but failed. In light of that, it is crucial that Congress enact a strong law to ensure that everyone has access to affordable health insurance.