The enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on March 23, 2010 set the foundation for historic changes to our country’s health care system. These changes address many of the inefficiencies and dysfunctions of the current health care system and help to end some of the worst abuses of the insurance industry.

Access and Affordability for Individuals and Families

One of the most important things that health care reform will do is improve access and affordability for individuals and families. Nationally, more than one in six of Asian Americans, and one in four Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are uninsured and even more are underinsured. By the year 2014, 32 million more Americans will be able to access affordable health insurance and health care. Many of them will be Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.

Competitive Health Insurance Markets

In addition, health reform will help lower costs and improve the quality of health care by creating new competitive health insurance markets and improving the coordination of care for people with chronic conditions. The law also expands initiatives to increase racial and ethnicity diversity in the health care professions, and requires health plans to communicate to consumers in way that they understand. Visit this webpage for updates and explanations of the impact that health care reform will have on you, your families and communities.