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Pelosi Statement on the Fourth Anniversary of the Affordable Care Act

March 21, 2014

Contact: Drew Hammill, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on the fourth anniversary of the enactment of the Affordable Care Act, which falls on Sunday, March 23rd. In advance of the anniversary, Leader Pelosi highlighted a new report showing that, thanks to the ACA, 7.9 million people on Medicare have saved more than $9.9 billion on prescription drugs and 37.2 million Medicare beneficiaries received free preventive services in 2013:

"Four years ago, Congress and President Obama made history for our country and progress for the American people with the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. With this law, we extended the reach of affordable, quality health insurance to millions of Americans, eliminated barriers to coverage for women, students, seniors, and young adults, and ended the worst abuses of the insurance industry. We fulfilled a century-old dream of reform, making health care a right, not a privilege, for all Americans.

"Today, there is new evidence of how this landmark law is strengthening the health and economic security of our nation's seniors – with the ‘donut hole' closing, with millions of seniors saving billions on prescription drugs, including 358,862 seniors in California in 2013 alone, and with millions more Medicare beneficiaries getting annual checkups, cancer screenings, and other essential preventive services free of charge.

"For seniors, for people with disabilities, for working families, small business owners, and the middle class, the Affordable Care Act is working. More than five million Americans – and counting – have signed up on the insurance marketplaces, 3.1 million young adults have gained coverage on their parents' plans, and millions more have secured insurance through the expansion of Medicaid. Americans are enjoying the critical protections and freedoms guaranteed by this law. Moving forward, we will build on the success of the Affordable Care Act as it continues to uphold the promise of ‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness' for every American."

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Issues:Health Care