What that means is that pre-ACA, if you went in to have a hip replacement and ended up developing a Staph infection while in recovery, Medicare/Medicaid would have covered the cost of the hip replacement and the treatment of the Staph infection. Post-ACA, Medicare/Medicaid won't reimburse the provider for the Staph infection treatment. This has led to higher outcomes for Medicare and Medicaid overall since 2010, according to KFF and the Commonwealth fund:
Except for the patient with the Staph infection.