AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
Since the conception of the Affordable Care Act in the year 2010, millions of people in the United States have benefitted through it. It has made health care more affordable and easily accessible for almost every section of the society. Millions of adults who were uninsured prior to the act have benefitted by getting included in the insurance coverage of their parents (till the age of 26 years). 2014 onwards, more number of adults were covered and buying health insurance became easier than before (Center for American Progress, 2016).
It will, of course, not be a simple process to implemented the Affordable Care Act, also called the ACA for the purposes of discussion here. In order to bring about the implementation of the act to its fullest potential, many strategies have been chalked out. These approaches have the potential of improving health care for the people of America. The strategic goals include extension of coverage for the uninsured, providing more secure coverage for the previously insured, improvement of the quality of health care and safety of the patients, reduction in the cost of health care, and improvement of overall quality of life of the people. In order to bring about the strategies into action establishment of Health Insurance Market places in every state was proposed along with integration of different states into the act (HHS.gov, 2016).
There are significant benefits to implementation of the Affordable Care Act in American society. Perhaps the most important benefit is that the ACA will provide many more Americans with improved accessibility to healthcare. There is a debate in the United States regarding whether affordable healthcare should be considered a universal right; although the bulk of this decision is still being fleshed out in the public sphere, there is a very significant argument in favor of increase accessibility. The ACA will also reduce the overall cost of healthcare to the American people, increase the affordability of healthcare, and improve the quality of care that is provided by healthcare professionals to the people. Finally, the goal for the act is to establish improvements in the overall quality of life for citizens, and to bring the healthcare standards of the United States up to the international standard (HHS.gov, 2016).
Economically, the act promises to be a relief for the young adults who were uninsured before the implementation of the act. Young adults after a certain age were removed from the coverage of their parents’ insurance. However, post- implementation of the act, adults up to the age of 26 years can avail the benefits of their parents’ insurance policies. The plan even includes the adults who do not reside with their parents, are not dependent on them, are tax payer themselves and are no more college going students. According to estimations, adding a young adult into the coverage plan will only lead to a marginal increase of 0.7% in the premium charges. In certain cases, the act also provides tax benefits for the covered adults.
According to a report of the newspaper The Fiscal Times, by Brianna Ehley, the acceptance for the Affordable Care Act has increased with the progressing time (Ehley, 2014). As people become more used to the idea of the Affordable Care Act and the idea that there should be a movement away from the privatized healthcare system, there is a general sense that the ACA has been a positive change for the United States as a whole. However, there are still many more issues to be addressed before the problem of the ACA is completely solved; there are also many more issues to be addressed before a single-payer system can be implemented.
The feasibility of the Act varies from person to person. For some sections of the society the Act has proved to be a boon, for some the Act has made no difference in their lives or towards the affordability of health care. For another section of the society the Act has made healthcare costlier than before the implementation of the Act. In the long term, the hope is that as a result of this Act, Americans will experience better access to healthcare, a decrease in the cost of health care facilities, and an improvement in the overall quality of life of the people of the United States of America as a whole
According to an article in the National Review by Diana Furchtgott- Roth and Jared Meyer, the Affordable Care Act has proved to be a nightmare for many Americans, mainly the younger population. The plan has indeed helped in getting coverage for millions of the uninsured people of the States, but it has also led to many negative implications. Many of the youngsters of America had to face cancellation of health insurance coverage plans after the implementation of the Act. The reason for such cancellations was attributed to the failure of their plans to meet the requirements of the Act. Many others had to face the increase in the premium of their coverage. The people who opted for not paying the raised premiums, had to pay a certain amount as a fine called as the individual mandate. In other words, the younger population of the United States was left with no option. They either have to pay the high premiums or have to pay the fine. The Act was bound to prove to be an expensive affair for them. The Act reduced the premium charges for the elderly and raised the same for the younger generation. This has forced a good number of younger people to opt out of the insurance coverage (Roth & Meyer, 2015).
Although many politicians like to paint the ACA as something the American people feel negatively about, this is generally untrue. According to a recent poll, 44% of the American population supports the Act and 56% are against (Obamacare Facts, 2016). These figures are sufficient enough to believe that the Act has not been able to generate much attention of the common people for whom it was intended. The Act has proved to be a boon for many people in the United States, but it has also added up to the burden of medical care for the health care fraternity and the professionals. Increase in the number of covered people calls for an increase in the need for health care professionals. But the present scenario suggests an overburden of patients on the nurses and other medical staffs. In the face of increased man force requirement, nursing professionals are unable to provide the required quality of health care for the people.
Employers in the United States are also not much in favor of the act as they have to provide insurance to all the employers working under them. With progressing years, the Act has made it compulsory even to the small business groups to provide coverage for its employees. It has added extra burden to the insurance companies too. The rise in the premium charges or imposition of fine has also made it less acceptable for the youth of the United States. The older population, however, on the other hand have greatly benefited from the Act. Health care has become affordable and more accessible for this particular section of the society.
The politicians and the political parties can bring about changes in the Act so that it becomes accessible and affordable to the population who are not yet covered under it or are unable to avail the benefits of the Act. They can also help by increasing the number of institutions for providing medical education and training people. The increased number of medical professionals can help in handling the sudden upsurge in the number of patients visiting health care centers.
Limited access to health care has also kept a major chunk of the population debarred of the benefits of the Act. The limitations of access can be seen in the older age group belonging to the remote areas. They are often unable to reach the centers which provide health care to the insured. Thus, the whole aim of covering such people goes in vain. Steps are needed to be taken for such people so that they can be brought to the health care centers easily. There is another section of the society which remains uninsured, they are the people who are not the natives of the United States (Obamacare Facts, 2016). The people residing in the States since years, but lacking the citizenship are not covered under the Act. For them the cost of health care seems a huge burden on their pockets. They thus remain deprived of the facilities and suffer chronic illnesses as a result.
One of the most important ethical issues faced by the youth as a result of the Act is the violation of their freedom of choice. They are not allowed to opt out of the act even if they desire so. If they do so, they have to pay a fine for the same. In other words, it can be said that the Act is forcing health care on the youth. However, others claim that even though this act does indeed foist healthcare onto the people, it does so because healthcare is a necessary thing for the people to have—that without health insurance, people are acting irresponsibly. In fact, the ACA helps young people find affordable insurance options (Center for American Progress, 2016).
References
Center for American Progress,. (2016). How the Affordable Care Act Helps Young Adults. Retrieved 1 March 2016, from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/report/2013/05/20/63792/how-the-affordable-care-act-helps-young-adults/
Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services,. (2016). Young Adults and the Affordable Care Act: Protecting Young Adults and Eliminating Burdens on Families and Businesses - Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Retrieved 1 March 2016, from https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/Files/adult_child_fact_sheet.html
Ehley, B. (2014). Polls Show Rising Acceptance for Obamacare. The Fiscal Times. Retrieved from http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2014/04/28/Polls-Show-Rising-Acceptance-Obamacare
HHS.gov,. (2016). Strategic Goal 1. Retrieved 1 March 2016, from http://www.hhs.gov/about/strategic-plan/strategic-goal-1/#obj_a
Obamacare Facts,. (2016). ObamaCare Poll: ObamaCare Approval Rating Popularity. Retrieved 1 March 2016, from http://obamacarefacts.com/obamacare-poll/
Roth, D., & Meyer, J. (2015). Obamacare is a Horror Story for Young Americans. National Review Online. Retrieved 1 March 2016, from http://www.nationalreview.com/article/418322/obamacare-horror-story-young-americans
