Amid the Republican rivals doing their level best to defund and delay the implementation of health care law of Barack Obama, the US president defended his signature health care law passed three years ago saying in the wealthiest country on earth, no one should go broke just because they get sick.
“For a long time, America was the only advanced economy in the world where health care was not a right, but a privilege. We spent more, we got less. We left tens of millions of Americans without the security of health insurance,” Obama said during a speech in US state of Maryland.
The Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, was passed by both the houses of Congress despite all the obstacles and was signed into law in 2010. The Supreme Court ruled it constitutional last year.
The president noted, “Five days from now — on October 1, millions of Americans who don’t have health insurance because they’ve been priced out of the market or because they’ve been denied access because of a preexisting condition, they will finally be able to buy quality, affordable health insurance.”
Starting October 1, Americans without health care insurance can begin signing up for coverage through online marketplaces named “exchanges” set by governments in different states, under the Obamacare. Americans have a six-month enrolment period for the exchanges if they want to avoid a fine for not buying insurance.
