Last Updated: January 18. 2011 1:00AM
Timeline for changes under health care law
President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act on March 23, 2010. Here is how the law's comprehensive health insurance reforms were to roll out through 2015:2010
June Seniors got a $250 rebate to help cover the $3,600 gap in Medicare drug coverage — the "doughnut hole."
Aug. 31 Enrollment opened in Michigan's high-risk insurance pool, funded with $141 million in federal subsidies. The pool will operate until Jan. 1, 2014.
Sept. 23 Several provisions took effect: Young adults can stay on a parent's health plan until age 26.
Insurers can't deny coverage for anyone under age 19 for pre-existing conditions.
Members of new insurance plans cannot be charged for preventive care measures, including immunizations, mammograms and colonoscopies.
Insurers can't rescind or retroactively cancel coverage except for fraud or misrepresentation.
Lifetime limits on benefits such as hospitalization and emergency care banned in new plans.
2011
Jan. 1 Seniors who reach the Medicare drug "doughnut hole" receive a 50 percent discount on covered brand-name drugs. The coverage gap ends in 2020.
Free preventive care for seniors. Insurers are required generally to spend 80-85 percent of premiums on health services.
Oct. 1 Community First Choice Option lets states offer home- and community-based services, through Medicaid, for people with disabilities.
2012
Jan. 1 Companies must complete 1099 IRS tax forms for each supplier with which they will spend more than $600 this year.
March Federal health programs must collect and report racial, ethnic and language data.
Oct. 1 Hospitals get financial incentives to improve the quality of care, with performance being publicly reported.
Health plans to begin implementing rules for the secure, confidential, electronic exchange of health information. Voluntary long-term care insurance program provides cash benefits to adults who become disabled.
2013 Jan. 1 New funding for state Medicaid programs that cover preventive services for patients at little or no cost. A national pilot program of paying providers a flat rate for each episode of care rather than billing each service or test separately to Medicare begins. Medicaid payments for primary care doctors increase to at least 100 percent of Medicare payments rates for primary care services for 2013-14.
Oct. 1 States get two years of funding to continue coverage for children not eligible for Medicaid.
2014
Jan. 1 Insurers are banned from refusing to cover individuals with pre-existing conditions. For individuals and small groups, insurers cannot charge higher rates because of gender or health status.
Most individuals must obtain health insurance or pay a fee to help offset the costs of caring for the uninsured, with exemptions for those who can't afford it.
New plans and existing group plans cannot put annual limits on the amount of coverage an individual may receive. Tax credits are provided for people with income up to 400 percent of the poverty line who are not eligible for other affordable coverage.
Health insurance exchanges will offer plans for individuals and small businesses that don't have employer coverage.
The small business tax credit increases to a maximum of 50 percent of an employer's health-insurance contribution.
Increase access to Medicaid for those whose annual incomes are less than 133 percent of the poverty level (about $29,000 for a family of four).
Workers who meet certain requirements and can't afford their workplace coverage can use the employer's contribution toward buying a plan through a health insurance exchange.
2015
Jan. 1 Physician payments from Medicare and Medicaid are to be tied to the quality of care provided.
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