Tip Tuesday: 7 Crucial Health Reform Law Dates in 2012

January 18, 2012 by Christian Schappel

Yes, the bulk of the healthcare reform law doesn’t kick in until 2014. But there’s still plenty going on with the law this year.

Seven dates you’ll want to keep in mind:

• Jan. 1. This month, groups of healthcare providers officially started to band together to form Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) to treat Medicare participants. They are designed to improve healthcare quality in an attempt to bring down costs. ACOs will accept a flat fee for all care related to a small group of Medicare patients. The idea is
  that the more an ACOs quality of care increases, the more its healthcare costs will decrease — and the more money it will make.
• March 26, 27, 28. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments to determine a) whether the individual mandate challenges to the law are barred by the Anti-Injunction Act, b) if the mandate is constitutional and c) whether the rest of the law can stand if the individual mandate is deemed unconstitutional.

Click Here for more important dates and the full article.