WASHINGTON — Although his signature law is in jeopardy, President Barack Obama’s work reshaping healthcare in America is certain to endure in the broad public support for many of its underlying principles.
Notwithstanding growing pains in connection securing some of the promises of the Affordable Care Act, the belief that people with medical problems should be able to get health insurance is no longer challenged. The idea that government should help those who can’t afford their premiums has gained acceptance. And the question is how much, and for what kind of coverage.
“The American people have now set new standards for access to healthcare based on the Affordable Care Act,” former Surgeon General David Satcher says. “I don’t believe it will ever be acceptable again to have 50 million people without access to healthcare.”
Obama’s influence will continue in other ways, less visible and hardly divisive:
• Medicare is shifting to paying for value, not just volume.
• The importance of prevention and front-line primary care is more widely recognized.
• Doctors and hospitals have computerized their records systems, even if connectivity remains elusive.
The government has opened up massive files of healthcare billing data, enabling independent analysts to look for patterns of questionable spending.
But conflict is part of Obama’s legacy, too. He leaves with the country deeply divided about the government’s role in healthcare.
