Implementing health care reform

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) -- Women, who are traditionally the decision maker when it comes to their family's health care, played a big role in re-electing President Barack Obama.

"I actually don't think that health care was the dominant issue, it was really the economy," Zack Cooper said.

Cooper is a health economist at Yale University.

"But I think it did reflect at some level, values. I think that's where it probably swayed them," Cooper said.

There was a definitive line in the sand on the issue of health care reform.

"What you saw very very clearly was that Governor Romney said on day one he was going to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. President Obama in the other hand was going to fully implement it," Cooper said.

Now comes the challenging process of implementing the Affordable Care Act, aimed at leveling the skyrocketing cost of health care.

"States are going to have to design these insurance exchanges that they are going to offer to folks who don't get insurance from their employers," Cooper said.

Which he describes as the amazon dot com for health insurance.

"What this does is it standardized the plans. It allows you to say what two different insurance companies are offering and how they would work best for you and your family," Cooper said.

People with insurance should see no changes.

"The real changes are going to come to the folks who had pre-existing conditions and couldn't get insurance coverage and to the folks who were just wealthy enough but they weren't eligible for federal programs but were still struggling to pay their insurance premiums," Cooper said.

For more information visit the Healthcare Advocates' website .