Boston University School of Public Health's latest news, upcoming events, and announcements.
 
 
The Future of the ACA
 

SPH This Week | Special Edition

 
In light of renewed efforts to undo the Affordable Care Act, we are devoting this week's issue of SPH This Week to discussions surrounding the ACA.
 
April 14, 2019
 
video
The Perils of Undoing the Affordable Care Act
Conservative lawmakers have recently revived both judicial and legislative efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. Four SPH professors explain the ramifications of undermining the law and why the ACA is still the beating heart of the American healthcare system.
 
 
Dean's Note
 
 
The ACA Debate Shows We Need to Change How We Talk About Health
 
The renewed debate over the Affordable Care Act is a chance for us to inform a conversation that addresses the core drivers of health.
 
ACA In the Classroom
 
 
‘Insurance Really Drives the Healthcare System’
 
In Health Insurance and Affordable Care Act seminar, students analyze legal and political challenges of watershed healthcare law.
 
 
Signature Programs
 
Video
In Focus: The Stakes of Healthcare Reform
Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, health care has dominated our discourse. While controversies over premium costs, work requirements, and more capture headlines, the successes and shortcomings of our current healthcare system demand a more nuanced national conversation. Since 2015, SPH has hosted thought leaders who have grappled with the myriad issues surrounding healthcare reform.
 
 
 
 
ACA Research
 
 
Published on 4/10/2019
 
Without ACA Federal Drug Discount Program, Hep C Treated at Loss
 
Future uncertain for Medicaid’s 340B, expanded under ACA, but low-resource hospitals would lose hundreds of dollars per hepatitis C patient without it.
 
Published on 1/16/2019
 
Work Requirements Run Counter to Purpose of Medicaid
 
Work requirements proving barrier to better health, with people who are disenrolled becoming less likely to find and keep work.
 
Published on 12/7/2018
 
States Are Future of Healthcare Reform
 
Opportunities exist for state-level, bipartisan collaboration to enact healthcare policy.
 
 
Published on 10/29/2018
 
Opposition to ACA May Be Cause of Decreased Choice and Competition
 
After 2015-2016 stability, proportion of counties with at least three Marketplace insurers dropped from 80 percent to 36 percent by 2018.
 
Published on 8/6/2018
 
ACA Policy Changes, Economic Factors Influence Use of VA Services
 
Unemployment and increased housing costs drive up utilization, while Medicaid expansion drives it down.
 
Published on 6/5/2018
 
Medicaid Expansion Increases Volume and Quality of Care in Rural Areas
 
[VIDEO] First two years of Medicaid expansion not only associated with increased coverage, but also better quality and more service use at rural community health centers.
 
 
Published on 11/8/2017
 
‘The Politics of Repeal Are Rooted at the State Level’
 
David K. Jones talks about his new book, Exchange Politics: Opposing Obamacare in Battleground States.
 
Published on 8/24/2017
 
ACA Reduced Disparities in Health Care Access
 
[VIDEO] More research needed to determine whether existing access gains will translate into improved health outcomes and reductions in disparities.
 
Published on 10/17/2016
 
Election Will Have Long-Term Consequences for ACA
 
[VIDEO] Changes to healthcare law, from expansion to repeal, largely depend on whether Republicans retain control of Senate.
 
 
 
 
ACA Viewpoints
 
 
Published on 11/8/2018
 
The Medicaid Wave
 
2018 will be remembered as the year with the greatest increase in the number of states expanding Medicaid coverage since the expansion went into effect in 2014.
 
Published on 5/8/2018
 
Why Not Single Payer Now?
 
Democrats and moderates spent the last decade building support for, developing, and then defending the Affordable Care Act. A resurgent progressive interest in single payer health care would abandon it.
 
Published on 1/23/2018
 
Work Requirements + Medicaid = Bad Medicine
 
Kentucky's new requirements promote stigmas against Medicaid recipients while lessening healthcare access for those who need it the most.
 
 
Published on 5/6/2017
 
American Health Care Act v. Affordable Care Act: Contrasting Views of Responsibility for Health
 
Senators will be deciding between personal responsibility and social solidarity in health care.
 
Published on 6/26/2015
 
SCOTUScare for Obamacare
 
The 6-3 ruling in King v. Burwell reveals the Court’s growing understanding of health reform.
 
Published on 3/6/2015
 
King v. Burwell and the Role of Scholarship in Health Reform Implementation
 
The fight over health insurance exchanges is a good example of politics affecting population health, and of the role academics can play in contributing to policy debates.
 
 

Affordable Care Act Signed into Law–March 23, 2010, Washington, DC

 
 
 
 
Looking Ahead
 
 
School Assembly for Faculty and Staff
 
Tuesday, April 23, 8:45 am – 10:50 am, Hiebert Lounge.
 
 
Accepted Students' Day
 
Saturday, April 27, 9:30 am – 5:00 pm, campus-wide.
 
 
PUBLIC HEALTH FORUM—Medicare for All. Is It Really Feasible?
 
Monday, April 29, 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm, Hiebert Lounge.
 
 
Staff Breakfast with the Dean
 
Tuesday, April 30, 9:30 am – 10:30 am, Crosstown 305.
 
 
View full SPH calendar