Professor & Reference/Instruction Librarian
St. Mary's University
One Camino Santa Maria
San Antonio, TX 78228-8608
USA
dduesterhoeft@stmarytx.edu
Consumer Information
If you are looking for links to consumer information about the ACA, instead of references for research papers, use the "Consumer Information" tab.
However, note that many of the links under that tab also have material of interest to researchers.
Background information
General and historical background on the health care debate in the U.S. can be found in the following electronic reference books. To search for information specifically about the ACA, use the "within publication" search box.
To find other resources in our electronic encyclopedia resources, use the Gale eBooks (formerly Gale Virtual Reference Library) search box below.
- Debates on U.S. Health Care
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Published in 2012, this book "features debates about the best solutions to health care policy and practice in the United States." - U.S. Health Policy and Politics: a documentary history
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The historical scope of the book covers all of American history. From the description: "Covers historic documents that show how U.S. health policies have evolved to the point where they now exert a tremendous influence over virtually every aspect of American life, from the commercial fortunes of industries to the household budgets of ordinary families." - Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act (Brookings Institution)review of research and opinion pro and con
Gale in Context: Opposing Viewpoints
- Gale in Context: Opposing Viewpoints This link opens in a new windowGale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints is the premier online resource covering today's hottest social issues, from capital punishment to immigration to marijuana. This cross-curricular resource supports science, social studies, current events, and language arts classes. Informed, differing views help learners develop critical-thinking skills and draw their own conclusions.
Opposing Viewpoints is a rich resource for debaters and includes viewpoints, reference articles, infographics, news, images, video, audio, and more. A category on the National Debate Topic provides quick and easy access to content on frequently studied and discussed issues. Periodical content covers current events, news and commentary, economics, environmental issues, political science, and more.
Gale eBooks
- Gale eBooks: General Reference Collection This link opens in a new windowAn award-winning, hassle-free eBook experience—anytime, anywhere, and on any device. Gale’s eBook platform provides comprehensive support from many of today’s top publishers.
Collections include titles on:
Arts, Biography, Business, Education, Environment, General Reference, History, Information and Publishing, Law, LCO, Literature, Medicine, Multicultural Studies, Nation and World, Religion, SATA, Science, Social Science, Technology
Discover: Searching for the ACA
For doing Library research on the ACA, our Discovery system will find articles, websites, electronic and tangible books on the topic. Just enter "Affordable Care Act" in the search box below.
Add other terms using the "Advanced Search" option for narrower results, depending upon your research focus. For example: policy, hospitals, "health care reform," laws, etc. Checking the "Peer Reviewed" box in the result list will eliminate news-type items (the majority of results without this limitation) and leave a listing of more analytical, academic, articles.
Discover: Find articles, books, and more...
Legal resources
The Public Law number is P.L.111-148 for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Its Statutes at Large citation is 124 Stat. 119. These numbers can be useful in searching some specialized databases.
For more guidance in finding legal information sources, see our guide: Legal Resources for Non-Law Students, or consult a librarian in the Law Library.
- Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act (PPACA) Resourcesvery valuable for legal research; includes detailed links to bills and regulations, as well as legal summaries and analyses
- Read the LawRead or download the entire law or individual sections, in PDF format. Each section link also includes a summary of the provisions of that section.
You can also read the text of the law by following the next link: - Patient Protection & Affordable Care ActPDF of the law in its entirety
- Supreme Court Decision on ACAofficial title of the decision is "NATIONAL FEDERATION OF INDEPENDENT BUSINESS ET AL. v. SEBELIUS, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, ET AL." The decision was handed down June 28, 2012.
- Public and Private Laws1995-present. Also known as slip laws. A slip law is an official publication. Public laws affect society as a whole, while private laws affect an individual, family, or small group.
- Congressional Bills1993-present. legislative proposals from the House and/or the Senate.
- HeinOnline This link opens in a new windowHeinOnline is Hein's premier online product, with more than 70 million pages of legal history available in an online, fully-searchable, image-based format. HeinOnline bridges the gap in legal history by providing comprehensive coverage from the inception of more than 1,600 law and law-related periodicals.
Focuses on law journals, case law, and government documents.
Some United States collections include the Congressional Record, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, and parts of the Serial Set. Other notable collections are the US state collections, Canon law materials, international treaties and agreements, English legal materials, and United Nations legal materials.
Databases by Category: Canadian Content, Case Law, Current Content Journals, International Resources, International Treaties and Agreements, U.K. Content, U.S. Federal Content, U.S. State Content
Learn more about this resource at: https://lib.stmarytx.edu/HeinOnline