Bankruptcy Rates and the Affordable Care Act
Does healthcare reform have an impact on the rate of personal bankruptcy filings ? According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal , mandatory health insurance could reduce the number of consumer bankruptcy filings across the country. And with the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding the tenets of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Illinois and the rest of the country may, perhaps, see a decline in the number of consumers filing for Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Recent History of Mandatory Insurance and Bankruptcy Filings How do we know that mandatory health insurance could have a noticeable effect on personal bankruptcy in our country? A study conducted last year by Northeastern University law professor Daniel Austin determined that Massachusetts saw a decline in consumer bankruptcy filings after health insurance became mandatory for all residents of the state back in 2005. Austin determined, in short, that Massachusetts residents who filed for ...