The greatest Obamacare irony of all

Since it was signed into law by now-former President Barack Obama in March 2010, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been a mixed bag. On one hand, the ACA, which is better known as Obamacare, wound up giving more than 20 million people the ability to get healthcare insurance. Many of these individuals were previously shut out of the healthcare system because they either couldn't afford it or had pre-existing health conditions and were unable to obtain coverage.

Obamacare made it so that all persons looking for health insurance were accepted, regardless of their health histories. Likewise, the law provided ample subsidies that allowed lower- and middle-income individuals and families the opportunity to lower their monthly premiums and doctor visit costs.

On the other hand, Obamacare also had beefed up minimum essential benefits that caused some insurers to cancel, rather than update, their plans, displacing millions of previously covered Americans who were now forced to find a new plan, and potentially, a new doctor. Obamacare also never controlled premium pricing as expected.
In 2017, the benchmark silver plan premium (second-lowest cost silver plan) for the 39 states covered by HealthCare.gov went up by an average 25%! Even with such ludicrous price hikes, most national insurers found the ACA exchange unsustainable and reduced their coverage significantly.

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