What is the Affordable Care Act (ACA)?

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is fundamentally a federal law aimed at improving access to health insurance for Americans. Enacted in 2010, the ACA brought significant reforms to the healthcare system with a focus on expanding health coverage, controlling healthcare costs, and improving the quality of care. Key components of the ACA include the establishment of health insurance marketplaces, the expansion of Medicaid, mandatory coverage of certain essential health benefits, and the prohibition of denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions.

The law also introduced various mechanisms to help individuals afford health insurance, such as subsidies for low-income individuals to purchase insurance through the marketplaces. Therefore, the description as a federal law designed to improve health insurance access accurately captures the primary intent and impact of the ACA in transforming healthcare access in the United States.