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After Obama, Some Health Reforms May Prove Lasting: New York Times by Abby Goodnough & Robert Pear—The Affordable Care Act is in extreme peril, and Mr. Obama will meet with congressional Democrats at the Capitol on Wednesday to try to devise a strategy that can stave off the quick-strike repeal of the health law that Republicans plan for the opening months of the Trump administration. But the transformation of American health care that has occurred over the last eight years — touching every aspect of the system, down to a knee replacement in the nation’s heartland—has a momentum that could prove impossible to stop. Expanding insurance coverage to more than 20 million Americans is among Mr. Obama’s proudest accomplishments, but the changes he has pushed go deeper. They have had an impact on every level of care—from what happens during checkups and surgery to how doctors and hospitals are paid, how their results are measured and how they work together.
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Hospitals in Safety Net Brace for Health Care Law’s Repeal: New York Times by Abby Goodnough—Before the health law, the hospital had to absorb the cost of caring for many uninsured patients like Mr. Colston. Now, with President-elect Donald J. Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress vowing to dismantle the law, Temple and other hospitals serving the poor are bracing for harsh financial consequences that could have a serious effect on the care they provide. Since the election, hospitals have been among the loudest voices against wholesale repeal of the health law… Here in Pennsylvania, where the health law has brightened the financial outlook of hospitals statewide, many are scrambling to assess how repeal would affect their bottom line and the patients they serve. Still, even hospitals serving affluent populations have reason to be nervous about a future without the health law.
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Under Obamacare, Fewer People Skipped Doctors’ Visits Because of Cost: Washington Post by Carolyn Y. Johnson—After the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, people in a majority of states were less likely to skip doctors' visits because of concerns about the cost of care, according to a new report that attempts to paint a snapshot of the effects of the law as its days are numbered.