For All the People: A Century of Citizen Action in Health Care Reform

In 2009, President Barack Obama declared, “I am not the first president to take up this cause [health care reform], but I am determined to be the last.” Obama did win a major victory with the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010, the most sweeping and comprehensive health care reform in U.S. history. Based on changes to the private insurance industry and an “individual mandate” requiring most people to buy insurance, the ACA bears little resemblance to earlier health reform proposals. It is also mired in continuing controversy; although most of the law has been upheld by the Supreme Court in 2012 and 2015, opponents still argue for its repeal, and even supporters are uncertain how much access and affordability the ACA can guarantee.

This module was adapted from content created by Beatrix Hoffman, Professor of History at Northern Illinois University. The original content can be found on the National Library of Medicine website.