Does Obamacare Cover People with Pre-Existing Conditions? – YES
General Reference (not clearly pro or con)
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Part I – Health Insurance Market Reforms, “Sec. 2704 Prohibition of Preexisting Condition Exclusions or Other Discrimination Based on Health Status,” page 36, signed into law on Mar. 23, 2010, available at the Library of Congress website:
“(a) IN GENERAL.—A group health plan and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage may not impose any preexisting condition exclusion with respect to such plan or coverage.”
Mar. 23, 2012 - Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (HR 3590)
The Public Health Service Act, Section 2704 [42 U.S.C. 300gg–3], “Prohibition of Preexisting Condition Exclusions or Other Discrimination Based on Health Status,” page 8, signed into law on May 24, 2010, available at the U.S. House of Representatives Document Repository website, states:
“(a) IN GENERAL.—A group health plan and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage may not impose any preexisting condition exclusion with respect to such plan or coverage.”
PRO (yes)
Pro
The US Department of Health and Human Services stated in its Aug. 2, 2012 posting “Children’s Pre-Existing Conditions,” available at the Affordable Care Act website:
“Under the Affordable Care Act, health plans cannot limit or deny benefits or deny coverage for a child younger than age 19 simply because the child has a ‘pre-existing condition’ — that is, a health problem that developed before the child applied to join the plan.
Until now, plans could refuse to accept anyone because of a pre-existing health condition, or they could limit benefits for that condition.
Now, under the health care law, plans that cover children can no longer exclude, limit, or deny coverage to your child under age 19 solely based on a health problem or disability that your child developed before you applied for coverage.
This rule applies to all job-related health plans as well as individual health insurance policies issued after March 23, 2010. The rule will affect your plan as soon as it begins a plan year or policy year on or after September 23, 2010.”
Pro
Barack H. Obama, 44th President of the United States, in a Mar. 18, 2012 posting, “The President’s Record on Health Care,” available at his website, provided the following information:
“Fact: Before the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies could deny coverage to children with medical conditions. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, as many as 17 million children with pre-existing conditions can no longer be denied health insurance.”
Pro
Kate Thomas, New Media Campaign Coordinator at the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), posted in her Mar. 23, 2012 article “Children with Pre-existing Conditions Can No Longer Be Denied the Care They Need,” available at www.seiu.org:
“Since September 23, 2010, children living with pre-existing health conditions can no longer be denied benefits or coverage by insurance companies, or even be limited in their treatment for a pre-existing condition.”
Pro
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) stated in their Feb. 23, 2012 annual report “Covering People with Pre-existing Conditions: Report on the Implementation and Operation of the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan Program,” available at the Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight website:
“The law [PPACA] ends discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. Insurers can no longer deny coverage to children because of a pre-existing condition and starting in 2014, refusing to cover anyone with a pre-existing condition is prohibited.”
Pro
Abby Matienzo, Communications Specialist at the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), wrote in a Mar. 23, 2012 press release “National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys Celebrates Two-Year Anniversary of Affordable Care Act,” available at the NAELA website:
“Coverage despite pre-existing conditions: In 2014, health insurance companies will no longer be able to deny coverage to beneficiaries due to a preexisting condition. Protections are already in place for certain individuals with pre-existing conditions, with the ACA’s sponsorship of high-risk health insurance plans for individuals with pre-existing conditions. As of November 2011, 450,000 individuals were participating in these plans.”
CON (no)
Con
[Editor’s Note: Based upon a neutral reading of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and bi-partisan third party analysis, this question seems to have a clear and obvious Pro (yes) answer, and ProCon.org has therefore presented the responses in a single column with no opposing perspective.]
