Whether you're a perfectly healthly college student or someone struggling with a chronic disease, The Affordable Care Act—coined "Obamacare" by members of the Repulican party—will likely affect you in some way.
The legislation, upheld by U.S. Supreme Court in June, aims to shrink the number of uninsured Americans. But do you know how to take advantage of new opportunites for covereage? With open enrollment deadlines for insurance providers inching ever closer, now is a good time to finally get a grasp on what you can expect from new healthcare reform laws.
To help make sense of it all, Consumer Reports has released a free online brochure titled, “Health Reform: The Seven Things You Need to Know," Explained in simple language, the guide lays out the basics.
The guide coveres everything from new protections and benefits offered under the Act to how your taxes may be impacted. It also explains one of the policy's biggest changes―mandatory healthcare coverage for those who can afford it―which will be rolled out in 2014.
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To read the guide in its entirety, you can download it here, or visit the Consumer Reports website.
Do you expect it to affect The Affordable Health Care Act new to affect you positively or negatively? Let us know in the Comments.
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A Bay Area native, Andri Antoniades previously worked as a fashion industry journalist and medical writer. In addition to reporting the weekend news on TakePart, she volunteers as a web editor for locally-based nonprofits and works as a freelance feature writer for TimeOutLA.com. Email Andri | @andritweets | TakePart.com