Without the health care law, the opioid crisis could have been worse, experts say.
“After a federal judge ruled Friday that the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional, President Donald Trump enthusiastically praised the decision as “Great news for America!”
The ruling will inevitably be appealed and most likely overturned. Should it stand, however, that “great news” would translate to more than 17 million Americans losing health care coverage and the uninsured rate rising by 50 percent, according to an Urban Institute analysis.
With the health care law temporarily in flux, it’s worth revisiting an often-unacknowledged aspect of how the ACA helps underserved Americans: It’s a key tool in addressing our nation’s opioid epidemic.
“If we are serious about treating addiction as a public health issue, and bending the curve of the opioid epidemic, we must maintain the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion,” said Regina LaBelle, the former chief of staff at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy during the Obama administration.”
Read more at: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/obamacare-solving-opioid-crisis_us_5c191a49e4b02d2cae8da4d1
Source: HuffingtonPost.com – December 19, 2018
