The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, signed into law in 2010, is the latest in a long string of efforts to reform health care in the United States. In this article, we provide a brief background and explore key components of this law. We examine extant research on what is known about how insurance coverage impacts consumer well‐being and the role health and financial literacy play in achieving well‐being. We then introduce important research questions highlighting areas where little is known and where much opportunity lies to inform policy and improve consumer well‐being.