HHS: Obamacare reduces Medicare drug costs
Over six million people with Medicare have saved $7 billion under the Affordable Care Act, the Health and Human Services Department announced Monday.
Reducing individual prescription drug costs by $1,061, Obamacare has begun to reduce the existing gap in this coverage for seniors. With a $250 check to those in the "donut hole" - those without full prescription coverage - the Affordable Care Act began to reduce this discrepancy, which is set to close by 2020.
- CBS News poll finds more Americans than ever want Obamacare repealed
- Obamacare "doing what it's designed to do," president says
Though Medicare growth has been slower than average, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said these reduced expenses are a sign the program is "much stronger" than it was before the Affordable Care Act.
While several states have projected lower health care premiums for those who purchase their own health care, the effect of the law remains unclear. Most recently, Maryland and New York have estimated significant decreases in insurances costs under the Affordable Care Act.
President Obama came under fire earlier this month for delaying the employer mandate by a year without changing the individual mandate set to begin in 2014.