More than 8 million Americans enrolled in health plans through the federal and state insurance marketplaces, yet a new study by Gallup found few have seen any benefit from the Affordable Care Act.
Gallup asked more than 2,500 Americans about how the ACA has affected them, and only 27 percent of people who signed up for policies this year said the healthcare reform law has helped them. However, Gallup noted this demographic is relatively small compared to the others. Of those who are insured and had a policy in place before the beginning of this year, only 11 percent said the ACA has benefited them. In addition, 13 percent of those without insurance said the same.
The majority of people said the ACA has had no effect on them, and the prevailing feeling among Americans is that the ACA may not make a difference to them in the long run.
"The law has never really recovered from the messed up rollout of the health exchanges last fall - that was a severe black eye," said Doug Whiteman, an insurance analyst with Bankrate.com, according to US News. "I also think that some of the negative political messages by the law's opponents also have a psychological impact on people."