The Future of the ACA and Health Care Policy in the United States

• Published in: JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association Vol. 317; no. 1; pp. 21 - 22
• Main Author: Wilensky, Gail R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Medical Association 03.01.2017
• Subjects: Employer Health Costs; Forecasting; Health care policy; Health Care Reform - legislation & jurisprudence; Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; Health Policy - legislation & jurisprudence; Health Policy - trends; Income; Insurance Coverage - statistics & numerical data; Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act 2010-US; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - legislation & jurisprudence; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - trends; Politics; Public health; United States
• ISSN: 0098-7484; 1538-3598
• DOI: 10.1001/jama.2016.18762

On Nov 8, 2016, Republicans won the presidency and retained control of the US House and Senate in Congress. The composition of the Senate shift will profoundly affect the passage of new legislation. With only 52 Republicans in the Senate, the Republican Senate leadership will have to ensure that all Republicans support any legislation because a few defections on an issue could push them into a minority position. More challenging is that except for budget-related legislation, which can pass with only a simple majority, other legislation, including much of an Affordable Care Act replacement bill, will require the support of 60 votes in the Senate to circumvent a filibuster. Wilensky talks about the future of ACA.