Washington, DC – Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-03) issued the following statement today celebrating the new Patient’s Bill of Rights protections included in the Affordable Care Act.

These provisions build upon the Patient’s Bill of Rights that many fought for in the 1990s, and now finally will put Americans back in charge of their health care. As part of the historic health care reform law, the Affordable Care Act, this new Bill of Rights will protect a patient’s choice of doctors, prevent insurance companies from denying coverage to children with pre-existing conditions, ban rescissions of coverage, end annual and lifetime caps on coverage, and ensure that if an individual is in need of emergency room services, they can get the care they need.

“For too long, insurance companies have dictated and managed our health care— and we ended that with the passage of the Affordable Care Act, ensuring that from now on, insurance companies will live in our world and play by the same rules as other industries. It is amazing to me that we have spent over 20 years trying to ensure that basic rights, like receiving the insurance benefits you had paid for, are protected from insurance companies that have all too often disregarded such ideas,” said Congresswoman DeLauro. “Passing the Affordable Care Act was a historic moment, and it is very pleasing to see the various provisions take effect as we move forward. The new Patients’ Bill of Rights will put Americans back in charge of their health care, and is something that we can all be proud of.”