The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) – also known as the Affordable Care Act or ACA, and often referred to as Obamacare – is the landmark health reform legislation passed by the 111th Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in March 2010.
The legislation includes a long list of health-related provisions that began taking effect in 2010. Key provisions extended coverage to millions of uninsured Americans, implemented measures to lower healthcare costs and improve system efficiency, and eliminated industry practices that include rescission and denial of coverage due to pre-existing conditions.
The law includes premium subsidies and cost-sharing subsidies designed to reduce the costs of coverage and care for eligible applicants.
Find out if you’re eligible for subsidies with this subsidy calculator, and keep in mind that premium subsidies have been enhanced through 2025 under the American Rescue Plan and Inflation Reduction Act, making them more robust than they were under the original ACA rules.
Millions have also gained coverage due to the ACA’s expansion of Medicaid, which has been adopted by all but ten states as of 2024.
Consumers can use Obamacare’s health insurance Marketplaces (exchanges) to easily compare the benefits and costs of ACA-compliant / qualified health plans. Plans are categorized under metal level classifications based on actuarial value – and catastrophic plans are also available to eligible enrollees.
Millions of people enroll in ACA-compliant health plans during an annual open enrollment period (OEP) that runs from November 1 through January 15 in most states (some states have different schedules). People can also enroll outside of the OEP if they have a qualifying life event that makes them eligible for a special enrollment period.
