Many have said the Affordable Care Actis still not affordable, and that might be true as a matter of opinion. “Affordability” is defined by the ACA to be below 9.5% of the individual’s household income. The ACA sets this ceiling for payment for healthcare.
However, a study conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation shows that while the ACA has made strides in providing affordable health coverage for Americans, they continue to struggle with payments for healthcare coverage for the last few years. The study comparatively breaks down 2015-2017 with the opinions of Americans being somewhat consistently on the decline.
In 2015, 63% of Americans found it easy to pay for monthly health insurance, while 27% found it difficult. In 2017, 58% of Americans find it easy to pay for monthly health insurance, and the percentage who find it difficult has jumped to 37%.
The study found reasons including a greater difficulty among Americans in paying for their medical bills, often having to cut back on other necessities to pay the bills. Others have dipped into savings and even taken on more jobs. Add to that concerns for actually visiting a doctor, for fear that the medical bills will be too costly.
Other numbers keep jumping up as well. In 2015, 24% of Americans expressed difficulties in copays for doctor visits and prescription drugs That number in 2017 is at 31%. In 2015, 34% of Americans found their deductibles to be hard to pay; now they are at 43%.
These numbers and the infographic below certainly reflect a need for change. The question is what that change will be once a replacement for the Affordable Care Act is in place.