Healthcare reform was an issue that desperately needed to be confronted, and President Obama did just that. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was needed to address 3 problems with our healthcare system: 1 out of 7 American is uninsured, we pay more for healthcare than any country in the world, and people could lose their insurance if they got sick or if they lost their jobs. The bill boils down to seven main points that are beneficial to our country. One: Individuals are required to have medical coverage. Two: Insurance companies cannot drop clients from their plan nor can they turn down potential costumers due to pre-existing conditions. Three: Young adults can stay on their parents’ plans until the age of 26. Four: Companies cannot offer plans that limit the amount of coverage in a year or in a lifetime. Five: Insurance companies are forced to spend no less than 80% of one’s premiums on medical costs, not other costs such as marketing. Six: Employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide coverage for their employees, or else pay a penalty. Seven: Employed individuals whose employers do not provide coverage can purchase insurance on a government website where insurance companies advertise their rates for individuals.

The idea of this bill is to ensure that all individuals are insured because healthcare is a right that all people must have. Therefore, this plan is successful in achieving this goal. It requires insurance companies to cover all people, and then makes it easier for individuals to find coverage. Before, people with pre-existing conditions struggled finding coverage and even finding jobs because no one wants to provide insurance to an individual who is guaranteed to be a large medical expense. Also, companies struggled finding the money to successfully insure their clients due to the fact that some people waited until they got sick to purchase insurance; now healthy people are required to pay for insurance as well. With a struggling economy it is helpful for young people to be able to stay on their parents’ plans until they are 26. Plans that have limits on them are not true insurance because after a certain limit they do not pay for expensive medical costs due to unexpected diseases such as cancer. Perhaps the best part about “Obamacare” is that it exists. Governor Romney tells voters that he has a better plan, and that they should just trust him that it’s better. In reality, he has no concrete plan. His plan is to let states handle healthcare reform themselves, but there is no guarantee all 50 states will take the steps necessary to offer coverage to all individuals.