In a Health Policy Report for the New England Journal of Medicine, The Commonwealth Fund’s David Blumenthal, M.D., Melinda Abrams, and Rachel Nuzum review the Affordable Care Act’s track record after five years, taking note not only of the 30 million Americans who now have insurance and consumer protections but also the decline in hospital readmission rates, improvement in hospital-acquired infection rates, and bolstering of the nation’s primary care capacity.
Also see Blumenthal’s recent blog post on the ACA’s impact thus far—“it’s time to let the facts guide our discussions”—and an issue brief providing greater detail on the law's major initiatives and their early effects on the quality and cost of care.