Health Care Reform is upon us and it is a major goal of Health Benefits US to make sure you understand the Affordable Care Act and what it has to offer. Below is a timeline of the new law change with the dates of what's changing and when.

Affordable Care Act Timeline:

2010

• The Affordable Care Act Becomes Law – March 23, 2010
• Providing Small Business Health Insurance Tax Credits – Effective January 1, 2010
• Allowing States to Cover More People on Medicaid – Effective April 1, 2010
• Relief for 4 Million Seniors Who Hit the Medicare Prescription Drug "Donut Hole" – First checks mailed June, 2010
• Cracking Down on Health Care Fraud – Many provisions effective now
• Expanding Coverage for Early Retirees – Applications for employers available June 1, 2010
• Providing Access to Insurance for Uninsured Americans with Pre-Existing Conditions – National program established July 1, 2010
• Putting Information Online – Effective July 1, 2010
• Extending Coverage for Young Adults – Effective for health plan years beginning on or after September 23, 2010
• Providing Free Preventive Care - Effective for health plan years beginning on or after September 23, 2010
• Prohibiting Insurance Companies from Rescinding Coverage - Effective for health plan years beginning on or after September 23, 2010
• Appealing Insurance Company Decisions – Effective for new plans beginning on or after September 23, 2010
• Eliminating Lifetime Limits on Insurance Coverage - Effective for health plan years beginning on or after September 23, 2010
• Regulating Annual Limits on Insurance Coverage - Effective for health plan years beginning on or after September 23, 2010
• Prohibiting Denying Coverage of Children Based on Pre-Existing Conditions - Effective for health plan years beginning on or after September 23, 2010 for new plans and existing group plans
• Holding Insurance Companies Accountable for Unreasonable Rate Hikes – Grants will be awarded beginning in 2010
• Rebuilding the Primary Care Workforce – Effective 2010
• Establishing Consumer Assistance Programs in the States – Grants awarded October 2010
• Preventing Disease and Illness – Funding begins in 2010
• Strengthening Community Health Centers – Effective 2010
• Payments for Rural Health Care Providers – Effective 2010

2011

• Prescription Drug Discounts – Effective January 1, 2011
• Free Preventive Care for Seniors – Effective January 1, 2011
• Bringing Down Health Care Premiums – Effective January 1, 2011
• Addressing Overpayments to Big Insurance Companies and Strengthening Medicare Advantage - Effective January 1, 2011
• Improving Health Care Quality and Efficiency - Effective January 1, 2011
• Improving Care for Seniors After They Leave the Hospital - Effective January 1, 2011
• New Innovations to Bring Down Costs – Funding becomes available October 1, 2011
• Increasing Access to Services at Home and in the Community – Effective October 1, 2011

2012

• Encouraging Integrated Health Systems - Effective January 1, 2012
• Understanding and Fighting Health Disparities – Effective March, 2012
• Providing New, Voluntary Options for Long-Term Care Insurance – Benefit plan October 1, 2012
• Reducing Paperwork and Administrative Costs – First regulation effective October 1, 2012
• Linking Payment to Quality Outcomes – Effective for payments for discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2012

2013

• Improving Preventive Health Coverage – Effective January 1, 2013
• Increasing Medicaid Payments for Primary Care Doctors -Effective January 1, 2013
• Expanded Authority to Bundle Payments - Effective January 1, 2013
• Additional Funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) – Effective October 1, 2013

2014

• Establishing Affordable Insurance Exchanges - Effective January 1, 2014
• Promoting Individual Responsibility - Effective January 1, 2014
• Ensuring Free Choice - Effective January 1, 2014
• Increasing Access to Medicaid - Effective January 1, 2014
• Makes Care More Affordable - Effective January 1, 2014
• Ensuring Coverage for Individuals Participating in Clinical Trials - Effective January 1, 2014
• Eliminating Annual Limits on Insurance Coverage - Effective January 1, 2014
• No Discrimination Due to Pre-Existing Conditions or Gender -Effective January 1, 2014
• Increasing Small Business Health Insurance Tax Credit - Effective January 1, 2014

2015

• Paying Physicians Based on Value Not Volume - Effective January 1, 2015