AARP Bulletin - April 2010

Your Health ; In the News
Health Care Reform: For the latest news,
go to bulletin.aarp.org/health_care. EXTRA!
Historic Health Care Bill Passes
In a historic climax to a bitter year-long political battle, on March 21 the House of Representatives narrowly approved a Senate bill to overhaul the nation’s health care system. With President
Obama’s signature, the bill immediately became law.

In the turbulent days leading up to passage, Obama
and Democratic leaders contended not only with fierce
opposition from Republicans, none of whom voted for
it, but also with the reluctance of some House Democrats
who objected to certain provisions in the Senate bill.
In the end, these members agreed to approve both the
Senate bill, by a 219-212 vote, and a package of changes

AUG. 25, ’09 Sen.
Edward Kennedy,
D-Mass., dies.
JAN. 19, ’ 10 Scott Brown (R) wins
Mass. seat, destroying Demo-
crats’ supermajority in Senate.
FEB. 25 Obama hosts seven-hour
summit in last-ditch push for
bipartisanship.
to it that, at press time, is expected to pass the Senate.
The landmark legislation represents an achievement
for Obama that other presidents—Theodore Roosevelt,
Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Richard Nixon,
Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton—sought unsuccessfully
for nearly a century.
The law will extend health coverage to 32 million unin-
sured Americans, penalize many employers who do not
offer coverage and individuals who do not purchase it,
provide subsidies for people with limited and moderate
incomes, and bar insurers from rejecting people with
preexisting conditions.

; AARP CEO A. Barry Rand gives his perspective on the mea-
sure, page 26. For what the new law means to you, see the
May issue of the Bulletin.
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