The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reported this week that some 16.4 million previously uninsured Americans had gained health coverage since the passage of President Obama’s marquee healthcare legislation, the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Within those gains, Latino enrollment stood out, where the uninsured rate dropped by 12.3 percent following the first quarter in 2015 – equal to about 4.2 million Latinos obtaining health coverage.
“…We celebrate today’s news that 16.4 million Americans have gained health insurance since the law’s passage. Not only are the sheer numbers impressive, but also we can see the law making a real impact on the uninsured rate, especially for Latinos and African-Americans,” said Anne Filipic, president of Enroll America, a nonprofit national health care enrollment coalition.
The baseline uninsured rate for Latinos prior to the implementation of the ACA was a staggering 41.8 percent according to HHS, and the current drop to 29.5 percent marks the largest gains among all racial and ethnic groups. Still, some 10 million Latinos are without health insurance, and the ACA remains under heavy fire from an unwavering Republican contingent that has sought to repeal the law time and time again.
“Millions of people have lost coverage they liked, and out-of-pocket costs continue to rise. Coverage does not equal care,” Wyoming Senator John Barasso, chair of the Senate Republican Policy Committee said. He added that the addition of people to the Medicaid rolls is “hardly worth celebrating.”
Unsurprising as the ACA attacks may be, the law’s opponents will not relent in their fight to refute both the law itself and the related government-produced data. For now, however, the numbers speak for themselves.
Recent Comments