Effect of the Affordable Care Act on diabetes care at major health centers: newly detected diabetes and diabetes medication management

摘要

The adoption of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)1 in the USA expanded health insurance for low-income Americans and took two main forms: Medicaid expansion in some states and subsidized private health insurance through insurance exchanges available in all states, with deep subsidies for persons with incomes from 138% to 250% of the federal poverty limit (FPL) in Medicaid expansion states and from 100% to 250% of the FPL in non-expansion states. Prior studies found a statistically significant slightly negative2 effects of the ACA on diabetes diagnoses and controversial (from insignificantly slightly positive3 to significantly positive4) effects on diabetes therapies at county and state levels. We examined the effect of both forms of ACA reform on the improvement of diabetes diagnostics and management in low-income patients who had access to healthcare before the ACA expansion (2011–2013).