The Affordable Care Act was introduced in 2010. Over the course of several years, the Act’s provisions were phased in, with the aim of offering more affordable health care coverage to more Americans than ever before.

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Since its introduction, the ACA has been hotly contested. The current Administration is seeking ways to follow through on a campaign promise to repeal this Obama-era piece of legislation. So far, though, attempts have been unsuccessful.

This guide looks at the ACA by the numbers, showcasing what it’s done for Americans and their families, and where it’s fallen short. If you’re thinking about expanding into the US, you should know as much as possible about benefits such as health care.

1. More Americans Have Health Care Coverage

The ACA was designed to provide more affordable health care coverage to more Americans. It’s no secret the cost of health care insurance has been rising, and fewer employers now offer it. This left millions of Americans uninsured.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 44 million Americans were uninsured in 2013, three years after the Act was introduced. That number fell to under 27 million by the end of 2016 but then climbed again.

At the end of 2017, 27.4 million Americans were still uninsured. While there’s still work to do, the end result is more Americans have coverage than ever before.

2. Most People Have Coverage for Less than $100 a Month

One of the biggest concerns about the ACA has been the cost of the program. Many politicians feel the program costs the government too much, while employers have voiced concern about rising health care insurance costs.

Reports found that, in 2017, more than 75 percent of eligible participants had coverage that cost them under $100 a month. This is mostly thanks to subsidies, which help offset the high costs of insurance.

3. The Costs Are Still High

For the remaining 23 percent of Americans covered by the ACA, premiums were high. Premiums are tied to risk factors, so older people tended to pay more. Someone in their 60s could find themselves on the hook for more than $10,000 in premiums.

Younger people paid less, but they were still paying around $5,000 per year. This is due to the fact that the ACA requires plans to include particular features. The costs of plans are expected to continue increasing, which is why some people say the current system is unsustainable.

4. States Would Suffer Disproportionately from Repeal

Since the 2016 election, there’s been talk of repealing the ACA. There have even been attempts to repeal or change the Act.

If the ACA were to be repealed, some states would be more severely impacted than others. Massachusetts would suffer the most. Rust Belt states like Michigan and Ohio would also be disproportionately affected, along with some of the coal-producing states like West Virginia.

5. The ACA Does More than Provide Health Care

Most people think of the ACA as a law about health insurance, but it actually does much more. The 10 sections of the Act outline a number of different provisions, each designed to improve the health care system in the United States.

One good example is the National Prevention Council, which acts as a coordinator for all federal health promotion plans. The idea is that encouraging Americans to live healthier lives will reduce the burden on the health care system in the future.

The Future of the ACA

From these facts and figures, it should be clear that the ACA has done good in some ways, but it has also fallen far short in other ways. More Americans have affordable coverage, but some are paying far too much for what seems to be an unsustainable system.

The ACA will continue to affect how employers handle health care benefits for their employees in the foreseeable future.