Military veterans are just one group of people who will be severely affected if the Affordable Care Act isn’t implemented, as the GOP would like.
The ACA does not affect the Veterans Health Administration, but it does give Medicaid to Americans who live below the poverty line and expand coverage to almost half of uninsured veterans.
According to an analysis from the Urban Institute in 2012, the 1,314,000 veterans today “have served more recently, are younger, have lower levels of education, are less likely to be married, and are less connected to the labor force.” Many are aided by the Veterans Administration, but could also “qualify for Medicaid to supplement their VA care under the expansion,” the analysis found. The Urban Institute also found that “40.1 percent of uninsured veterans have incomes that could qualify them for tax credits under the law.”
But Republicans are worried that the health act will cost millions to their states, even though the Congressional Budget Office says the federal government 100 percent of the costs for the first 3 years.