During his State of the Union address last night, President Barack Obama detailed how the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has helped Americans and encouraged everyone to help the uninsured get health insurance, according to a transcript of the speech obtained by The Washington Post.
"Help them get covered," President Obama said, urging Americans to help those they know without health insurance. "Moms, get on your kids to sign up. Kids, call your mom and walk her through the application."
Because of the PPACA, the president also noted more than 3 million people younger than 26 have gained coverage under their parents' health plans, and 9 million have signed up for private health insurance or Medicaid. He went on to point out how the law has helped people by prohibiting health insurers from denying them coverage because of pre-existing conditions and from charging women more than men.
He also asked Republicans to stop attacking the law unless they could present a viable alternative, stating that "if you have specific plans to cut costs, cover more people, increase choice, tell
"The first 40 were plenty," he said of the times the House has voted to repeal the PPACA. "We all owe it to the American people to say what we're for, not just what we're against."
Earlier this week, Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) introduced legislation that would repeal and replace the healthcare reform law. The Patient Choice, Affordability, Responsibility, and Empowerment, or CARE, Act would do away with many core PPACA provisions such as the individual mandate requiring people to get health insurance or pay a fine. It would also only protect people with pre-existing conditions from being denied insurance if they maintained "continuous coverage from one plan to another."
According to an Associate Press-Gfk poll conducted earlier this month, 42 percent of Americans oppose the PPACA, 27 percent support it and 30 percent have taken a neutral stance. The glitch-ridden rollout of the federal health insurance exchange website, HealthCare.gov, has led to a negative perception of the health insurance marketplaces, with 66 percent of adults surveyed saying the rollout of the exchanges isn't going well (although that number has dropped from 76 percent in December).
More Articles on the PPACA:
Republican Senators Propose PPACA Replacement
Poll: Negative Views of PPACA Marketplaces Decline
White House Dismisses Concerns About Lack of Young, Healthy PPACA Enrollees