This report by The Commonwealth Fund examines the effect that the Affordable Care Act will have on individuals between the ages of 50 and 64. This population is unique in that many are uninsured due to high unemployment rates and the suspension of employer sponsored insurance.

From the report:

The number of men and women between the ages of 50 and 64 who are uninsured climbed to 8.6 million in 2009, an increase of 1.1 million from 2008 (Exhibit 1).1 About 4.2 million women and 4.3 million men were without health insurance. In addition, an estimated 9.7 million adults in this age group—sometimes known as "baby boomers"—have health insurance with such high out-of-pocket costs relative to income that they are effectively underinsured.2 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 will provide health insurance to all U.S. citizens starting in 2014 and significantly improve the quality of health insurance. In particular, of the 8.6 million 50-to-64-year-olds who were uninsured in 2009, up to 6.8 million would gain subsidized coverage once all the law’s provisions go into effect in 2014—3.3 million in families earning less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level would gain coverage under Medicaid and 3.5 million earning less than 400 percent of poverty would gain subsidized private coverage through the insurance exchanges (Exhibit 2). In addition, about 1.4 million older currently uninsured adults with incomes of 400 percent of poverty or higher would have access to health insurance plans through the exchanges.

Full Report:Realizing Health Reform’s Potential: Adults Ages 50–64 and the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PDF | 860 KB)

The Commwealth Fund. (2010). Realizing health reform's potential: adults ages 50-64 and the Affordable Care Act of 2010. Collins, S., Doty, M., and Garber, T.