Is America finally ready to focus on tangible health care results instead of partisan agendas?

Hopefully the answer is yes now that the United States Supreme Court has ruled that most of the Affordable Care Act — “Obamacare” to its critics — is constitutional and can be enforced by the federal government.

For months the battle over this landmark legislation has been more about political posturing than anything else. Politicians on both sides of the aisle have tried to blur the facts or twist them to further their own agendas.

Although some critics have vowed to continue the fight to repeal or overturn the legislation, it would be far more constructive for our leaders to start working together on ensuring that the result of the law is that we have the best health care system in the world, one that is accessible to everyone.

Does the Affordable Care Act include positives changes? Absolutely. These include the fact that millions of Americans who couldn’t afford or couldn’t get approved for health insurance will now have access, the costs of many prescriptions will drop and more preventative screenings will be fully covered, just to name a few.

Does it have some negatives? Of course. Tops among these is the uncertainty of how this will work and how it will impact the average taxpayer. Also, how will insurance companies respond in terms of changes to existing coverages. The plan also had a forced Medicaid expansion that could have been devastating to state governments but it was thankfully struck down by the court.

The time for rhetoric and grandstanding has passed. These changes are likely here to stay, at least for the foreseeable future.

Let’s start really focusing on patients instead of politics.