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By Ken Yeager

The past several weeks have been an emotional roller coaster on so many levels because of the presidential election, especially when I think about health care for the residents in our communities. I am filled with anxiety, but also resolve to do everything I can to make sure that the great strides in health care we’ve made over the last decade are not lost.

With a combination of research, public health campaigns (such as reducing sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and treating e-cigarettes and vaping like tobacco), and, perhaps most importantly of all, the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, we have improved the overall health outcomes in Santa Clara County.

In our county, we recognized the 2010 passage of the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, as a tremendous opportunity to significantly improve the health of a large number of Santa Clara County residents. One of my top priorities since then has been to ensure that the county-owned hospital Santa Clara Valley Medical Center (VMC), and the entire public health care system, takes full advantage of the reforms.