Obamacare Turns Five: How Far the Law Has Come

Millions more Americans now have affordable health care.

President Obama’s Vision Celebrates Its Fifth Anniversary - Time flies! The historic Affordable Care Act turns five in March. Learn more about how much Obamacare has accomplished thus far, the gaps it still needs to fill and the ongoing debate over health care reform. — Kellee Terrell(Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

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President Obama’s Vision Celebrates Its Fifth Anniversary - Time flies! The historic Affordable Care Act turns five in March. Learn more about how much Obamacare has accomplished thus far, the gaps it still needs to fill and the ongoing debate over health care reform. — Kellee Terrell(Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

POTUS’ Vision - When President Obama announced the Affordable Care Act, he said that he wanted everyday people to have access to high quality care that could fit into their budget.  (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

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POTUS’ Vision - When President Obama announced the Affordable Care Act, he said that he wanted everyday people to have access to high quality care that could fit into their budget.  (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

The Debate Rages On - While POTUS signed the bill on March 23, 2010, to much applause around him, the GOP was very critical, calling the bill a sign of "socialism," and the nation was split on how they felt. Also in the 2014 midterm elections, Obamacare was used against the Democrats, resulting in their losing power of the Congress and House of Representatives. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images) 

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The Debate Rages On - While POTUS signed the bill on March 23, 2010, to much applause around him, the GOP was very critical, calling the bill a sign of "socialism," and the nation was split on how they felt. Also in the 2014 midterm elections, Obamacare was used against the Democrats, resulting in their losing power of the Congress and House of Representatives. (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images) 

The Supreme Court Takes on the ACA - Since its inception, there have been numerous lawsuits brought against the ACA, in which the ACA has prevailed. We are currently waiting for the Supreme Court to hand down a ruling on whether offering discounts on health care to Americans is constitutional. It's believed this ruling will come this summer.  (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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The Supreme Court Takes on the ACA - Since its inception, there have been numerous lawsuits brought against the ACA, in which the ACA has prevailed. We are currently waiting for the Supreme Court to hand down a ruling on whether offering discounts on health care to Americans is constitutional. It's believed this ruling will come this summer.  (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

More Americans Have Insurance - Before the ACA, 49 million Americans were uninsured. Now that number has gone down to between 30 million and 40 million, going from 16.9 percent to 12.3 percent. Also between October 2013 and March 2015, 2.3 million African-American adults gained coverage (a 9.2 percentage point drop among uninsured Blacks).(Photo: 13/Hero Images/Ocean/Corbis)

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More Americans Have Insurance - Before the ACA, 49 million Americans were uninsured. Now that number has gone down to between 30 million and 40 million, going from 16.9 percent to 12.3 percent. Also between October 2013 and March 2015, 2.3 million African-American adults gained coverage (a 9.2 percentage point drop among uninsured Blacks).(Photo: 13/Hero Images/Ocean/Corbis)

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Young People Have Also Benefited, Too! - More young adults ages 19-25 have health care, thanks to the ACA letting young people stay on their parents’ insurance until they turn 26. The uninsured rate fell from 34.1 percent to 26.7 percent from 2010 to 2013, with 2.3 million young people gaining coverage. Between 2013 and March 2015, 3.4 million more young people have enrolled. (Photo: Jamie Grill/Tetra Images/Corbis)

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Young People Have Also Benefited, Too! - More young adults ages 19-25 have health care, thanks to the ACA letting young people stay on their parents’ insurance until they turn 26. The uninsured rate fell from 34.1 percent to 26.7 percent from 2010 to 2013, with 2.3 million young people gaining coverage. Between 2013 and March 2015, 3.4 million more young people have enrolled. (Photo: Jamie Grill/Tetra Images/Corbis)

What About Medicaid Expansion? - It’s up to states to decide whether they will accept Medicaid expansion or not — and most southern and GOP-run states have not. The worry is that without that expansion, more low-income African-Americans will continue to fall through the health care cracks. (Photo: moodboard/Corbis)

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What About Medicaid Expansion? - It’s up to states to decide whether they will accept Medicaid expansion or not — and most southern and GOP-run states have not. The worry is that without that expansion, more low-income African-Americans will continue to fall through the health care cracks. (Photo: moodboard/Corbis)

What’s Different for Us Now? - Thanks to the ACA, a lot has changed: A health care company cannot turn you away because of a preexisting condition; because of government subsidies you don’t have to pay full price for a plan; and preventive care is co-pay-free. (Photo: LWA/Dann Tardif/Blend Images/Corbis)

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What’s Different for Us Now? - Thanks to the ACA, a lot has changed: A health care company cannot turn you away because of a preexisting condition; because of government subsidies you don’t have to pay full price for a plan; and preventive care is co-pay-free. (Photo: LWA/Dann Tardif/Blend Images/Corbis)

What Else? - While Obama did say that premiums would plummet, that wasn’t quite true. Premiums have gone up for job-based health insurance, but according to the Associated Press, it’s not by that much. In 2010 a single plan was $5,049, and in 2014 it was $6,025. (Photo: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc/Blend Images/Corbis)

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What Else? - While Obama did say that premiums would plummet, that wasn’t quite true. Premiums have gone up for job-based health insurance, but according to the Associated Press, it’s not by that much. In 2010 a single plan was $5,049, and in 2014 it was $6,025. (Photo: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc/Blend Images/Corbis)

Time Will Tell - We know that the more people with health care there are, the stronger and healthier we can become. And while some surveys show huge gains in coverage increases and some show modest ones, the reality is that this type of data takes time to figure out. In the meantime, do you have coverage?(Photo: JLP/Jose L. Pelaez/Corbis)

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Time Will Tell - We know that the more people with health care there are, the stronger and healthier we can become. And while some surveys show huge gains in coverage increases and some show modest ones, the reality is that this type of data takes time to figure out. In the meantime, do you have coverage?(Photo: JLP/Jose L. Pelaez/Corbis)