FACT SHEET: Candidates’ Health Care Plans Outlined

One of the major issues in this year’s presidential election is the fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which ensures that all Americans have coverage beginning 2014.

The Alliance for Health Reform has produced a fact sheet (pdf) detailing the health care plans of both President Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

In short, if re-elected, President Obama will ensure that the ACA is fully implemented, including the provision expanding coverage of low-income individual and families in the Medicaid program.

Romney, meanwhile, has vowed to repeal the ACA and convert Medicaid into a block-grant program.

For many direct-care workers the future of Medicaid is critical, as it is a major payer of long-term services and supports, and will also be the primary insurer of nearly 1 million direct-care workers.

The Alliance’s fact sheet also includes links to other articles and reports, and provides contact information for relevant organizations and experts.

– by Carol Regan, PHI Government Affairs Director