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Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has already said a repeal of health reform would mean as many as 129-million Americans with pre-existing medical conditions could be denied insurance coverage.

And local Democrats are citing estimates that New York families would once again be faced with skyrocketing premiums and the five boroughs would be hit with billions in health care costs without reform.

But public health experts say it's pretty tough for the grim perspective being painted to become a reality based on what seems to be an overwhelmingly symbolic gesture.

“Repealing the law is going to face a lot of opposition in the Democratic-led Senate and it would almost certainly meet the veto pen of President Barack Obama,” says Dr. David Sandman, senior vice president of the New York State Health Foundation. “So whatever happens in the House, health reform is the law of the land and it is going to stay that way at least for the near future.”

A number of protections due to the Affordable Care Act are already in place, including no more lifetime caps on coverage. Insurance companies can no longer drop patients who become chronically ill from policies, children can no longer be denied coverage for pre-existing conditions, and young adults can remain on their parents plans until age 26.

There's no more cost sharing for preventive care services and tax credits are already available to help small businesses cover the cost of insurance.

“I don't think there is any immediate meaning to this vote beyond the symbolism and the political advancement of the debate,” says United Hospital Fund President Jim Tallon. “What we are talking about, unlike 12 months ago, this is a discussion about a law, the law that passed after 100 years of debate in the United States and it is the beginning of the Republican movement toward 2012 and, of course, it is the beginning of the Democratic movement toward 2012.”

And while debate continues to rage over how many billions health reform, or the lack thereof, will or won't cost, experts say right now the focus has to be on moving forward.

“States have a lot of work to do, a lot of tasks ahead of them if they want to make the most of this law, if they want to cover 32-million Americans, if we want to change the way we deliver care, if we want to, in fact, bring down the cost of health care we need to implement this law and do it well,” says Sandman.