The Affordable Care Act has transformed the health care system for individuals with chronic illnesses. The ACA stipulates that insurance companies can no longer discriminate against individuals with preexisting conditions (Burge, & Schade, 2014). Prior the enactment of the ACA, individuals with chronic conditions, had difficulties procuring health insurance because of their illness. Individuals with chronic conditions from low income households must have an earning about 400% below the federal established poverty guideline, which as of date is $45,960 to qualify for federally subsidized health insurance (Burge et al., 2014). Researchers estimated that approximately thirty-two million Americans with chronic conditions will have access to health care as a result of the ACA (Arora et …show more content…
According to Arora and her colleagues (2011), a large percent of individuals with chronic illness such as heart disease, diabetes, live in regions that have limited access to health care services which exacerbates these conditions. As a result, the ACA emphasizes the significance of primary care in the underserved and rural population. This resulted in the allocated $11 billion towards improving the existing community health centers and creating new center in the underserved regions (Arora et al., 2011). The development of health centers in underserved regions will reduce the number of chronic illness in these communities in the future due largely to the fact, that individuals will have access to preventive care. Eventually, with increased access health care facilities, primary care and preventive service for low income individuals and families, improvement in the overall health and