Three years after the ACA took effect, 20.6 million people with cardiovascular disease and its risk factors still lacked health insurance, despite significant gains among some people with CVD/CVRFs, according to a study published by the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
For the study, researchers from Harvard Medical School in Boston examined data on more than 1 million adults with CVD/CVRF conditions. The study authors compared data from before the ACA was implemented in 2012-13 to data after the law took effect in 2015-16.
States that expanded Medicaid eligibility saw insurance coverage increase among Americans with CVD/CVRFs from 81 percent to 89 percent. In nonexpansion states, coverage grew from 76 percent to 81 percent. The study also found Americans with CVD/CVRFs were less likely to skip a physician visit because of cost. All together, 9.8 million gained coverage under the ACA.
However, researchers uncovered major gaps in coverage and care access for this population: More than 20 million low-income Americans with CVD/CVRFs still lacked coverage. The study's lead author, Ameen Barghi of Harvard Medical School, told Physicians for a National Health Program: "The good news is that the medications for cardiovascular disease are very effective, and millions of Americans gained some coverage under the ACA. Unfortunately, despite these gains, millions of Americans with these conditions remain uncovered, and many of those will likely suffer serious complications and even death because they cannot get the care they need."