U.S. President Barack Obama returned to the White House on Tuesday to savor the 12th anniversary of his signature Affordable Care Act, which is now part of the fabric of the American health care system and whose reach President Joe Biden is looking to extend.
Sign-ups under the health law have increased under Biden's stewardship, and more generous taxpayer subsidies have cut costs for enrollees, albeit temporarily.
Obama said he and Biden accomplished "a lot" in their eight years as stewards of the country, but "nothing made me prouder than providing better health care and more protections to millions of people across this country." The law was such a bugaboo in 2010 that Democrats rarely invoked it as they went into a midterm election that turned out to be, in Obama's own words, a "shellacking." Now, Democrats are hoping the political equation will work to their advantage, and that a focus on shoring up the tween-age health law can help them avoid a debacle at the polls this November.
Shortly after taking office, Biden opened up the health insurance markets to anyone seeking coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic, and his coronavirus relief bill provided a significant, though temporary, increase in financial assistance. The result was a record 14.5 million people signed up for subsidized private coverage.
People tripped up by the family glitch are dependents of workers who have an offer of employer coverage that the government interprets as being affordable. As a rule, people with affordable employer coverage are not eligible for taxpayer-subsidized ACA plans. The White House estimates that the fix would help 200,000 people get insurance and bring costs down for nearly 1 million more.
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