The Patient’s Bill of Rights refers to a written law or declaration that contains a list of minimum guarantees to which every patient is entitled such as fair treatment, autonomy regarding medical decisions and confidentiality of patient information. Adopted in 1995, this Bill of Rights gives every American patient the right and freedom against discrimination based on medical condition, to consult a physician of their choosing, purchase medical care of their choice and to be given full disclosure of the healthcare insurance plan. With the enactment of the ACA in 2010, President Obama introduced more regulations that would ensure full protection of the rights and freedoms pf patients under the Act. The ACA mainly addresses the Patient’s Bill of Rights in the areas of costs, care and coverage.
The ACA contains a number of provisions that address the Patient Bill of Rights. Firstly, the Act ensures that every patient has the right to choose a doctor and a medical insurance plan of their choice. Secondly, it gives patients the right to appeal unfair health plan decisions made on their behalf and the right to access preventive healthcare services. Moreover, the ACA policy addresses the Patient Bill of Rights by ensuring that there is fair and just treatment in cases of emergency care.
Most importantly, the new healthcare reform legislation has an improved version of the Patient’s Bill of Rights that ensures that there is flexibility and stability in terms of the ability of the American people to make informed choices concerning their health and healthcare insurance plans. It also ensures that a patient’s insurance coverage cannot be arbitrarily withdrawn by a private insurer or the state. It also protects the patient’s choice of physicians by removing the previous practice of imposing them on patients. Further, according to Furrow (2011), the PPACA ensures there is protection of patients from injuries caused by medical negligence hence effectively regulating patient safety. In addition to this, Young (2012) states that the health care reform under the ACA guarantees patients’ rights by ensuring that they are not discriminated against on the basis of pre-existing medical conditions and cannot be charged more due to their gender. Hashimoto (2013) also observes that the Act should address the Patient’s Bill of Rights through equal coverage under managed healthcare plan, via procedural fairness and improved access to healthcare (pp. 5-6).
References
Furrow, B. R. (2011). Regulating patient safety: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. University of Pennsylvania Law Review Journal, 159, 1727-1773.
Hashimoto, D. M. (2013). The proposed Patient's Bill of Rights: The case of the missing equal protection clause. Yale Journal of Health Policy, Law, and Ethics, 1(2001)(1 (4)), 1-17.
Young, J. (2012, November 21). Health care reform rules give patients’ rights. The Huffington Post. Retrieved May 30, 2016, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/20/health-care-reform- rules_n_2165152.html
