Almost All States Are Taking Action to Implement Health Law's Key Insurance Market Reforms
<p>As the second anniversary of the Affordable Care Act approaches, a new Commonwealth Fund analysis finds that 49 states and the District of Columbia have already taken some form of <a href="/publications/issue-briefs/2012/mar/implementing-affordable-care-act-state-action-early-market">action to enforce several of the law's new insurance market reforms</a>, whether by passing legislation, issuing regulations or other guidance, or actively reviewing insurer filings. These early reforms, which went into effect in 2010, include new rules banning insurers' lifetime limits on benefits and requiring insurers with dependent coverage to insure young adults up to age 26.</p><p>Georgetown University's Katie Keith, Kevin W. Lucia, and Sabrina Corlette assessed state activity on 10 early reforms, including those known collectively as the Patient's Bill of Rights. The researchers found that between January 1, 2010, and January 1, 2012, 23 states and the District of Columbia had taken new legislative or regulatory action on at least one of these reforms, and an additional 26 states had promoted compliance with the reforms, such as by issuing bulletins to insurers.</p>
<p>Visit commonwealthfund.org to read the study and use an <a href="/usr_doc/site_docs/flash/StateAction.html" target="_blank">interactive U.S. map</a> showing how each state is complying with the law.</p>
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