Affordable Care Act Celebrates First Year of Enactment, Safety Net Health Systems Leaders in Implementation - March 23, 2011

NAPH on March 23 released a statement commemorating the first anniversary of the passage of the health reform law. Most importantly for the millions of low-income and vulnerable patients served by the nation’s public and safety net hospitals, the law expands coverage to more than 30 million people who would otherwise lack it through an expansion in Medicaid eligibility and the establishment of state-based health insurance exchanges. As the nation’s leading providers to vulnerable patients, we certainly know the importance of health care coverage. For the past year, NAPH and our member hospitals have worked tirelessly with the Administration on implementation of the new law. We have focused our work on making sure that the law takes into account the needs of our unique patient population and have worked to educate Congress about the value of the law for our hospitals and patients. The law is by no means perfect; we have urged Congress to improve the law, while leaving in place the critical investments in coverage and a better delivery system. You can read the full statement here.