The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Affordable Care Act or ACA) is the health care reform law that President Obama signed into law on March 23, 2010. The Affordable Care Act , along with the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, are very large and comprehensive efforts to reform the nation’s health care system. The law largely addresses health insurance reforms, but also impacts Medicare, Medicaid and includes the permanent reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.
The National Indian Health Board, the National Congress of American Indians and the National Council of Urban Indian Health formed a united front to ensure that the Treaty rights of Tribes and the trust responsibility of the United States government to provide health care to American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) were protected and enhanced under health care reform.