Health care is one of the major political issues facing the nation today. Most industrialized countries have national healthcare system, while the United States only provide coverage for those who are eligible under government programs like Medicare and Medicaid. As the cost of health care to continue to increase, many question the role of the government while other blame insurance companies for increase in premium.
The United States spend entirely to much money on health care compared to other industrialized countries. Yet, other countries achieved far better health for more people at less cost, according to OECA. Of the 34 countries rated by the OECD study, the United States ranks #1 in health care spending per capita and #1 in percentage
…show more content…
It became law in March 2010 as a way to improve the U. S. health care system by expanding coverage to more Americans (Gruber 2011). The Affordable Care Act gave millions of people access to health insurance. Since the passage of ACA, more people are able to purchase health insurance (including those with preexisting conditions), children under 26 can remain on parent's insurance, businesses with less than 25 employee are assisted with providing coverage. Also children under 19 with pre-existing conditions can't be denied coverage (Gruber, 2011).
Millions of people couldn't afford health insurance before the ACA was passed. The ACA made health insurance affordable and eliminated discrimination against those with pre-existing conditions. Before the ACA, insurance companies would drop or increase premiums due to a late developing "pre-existing condition" and "unrelated cancer surgery." The insurance companies would terminated coverage for women who receive treatment for sexual or domestic violence (and other
…show more content…
According to CNN reporter Anderson Cooper, Christiana Turner was sexually assaulted by two men after being slipped knockout drugs in her drink at the bar. She took anti-AIDS medicine prescribed by her doctor for proper precautions. But never developed an HIV infections. Months later she was denied coverage. Turner was told by her insurers that the "HIV medication raised too many questions." She was also told to remain AID-free for the next three to four years (Ivory, 2015).
The Affordable Care Act help prevent cases like this from reoccurring. Now, your health premiums is based on your age, state, and whether you smoke or not (Ivory, 2015). The idea was to get more people insured. Some like that idea, while others didn't, and probably always will be opposed to getting more people insured. Many who criticize the ACA complain of increased costs for their insurance. These are typically self-employed and earning too much to receive subsidies.
Although the ACA have made progress, many still question whether or not this new law is working. The law is too complicated for people to understanding their coverage. "The ACA is not perfect", "but at least" the U.S. has taken one step toward reducing the disparities between rich and poor and providing health coverage to everyone (Gruber, 2011). In this paper I will discuss the benefit of the ACA and the affect it will have on provider reimbursement.
Effects of
In 2010 President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (ACA) into law. ACA is pivotal legislation that had rippling effects throughout the healthcare system. The Affordable Care Act was drafted with the sole intention of expanding healthcare access across the country. Under the ACA, Americans are now mandated to purchase health insurance or face a penalty. Americans without insurance are able to get coverage by purchasing through the insurance exchange or by qualifying for Medicaid. The poverty level was raised for Medicaid and new provisions allowed single men to also qualify. Anyone that does not qualify for Medicaid would need to purchase a plan on the insurance exchange and various subsidies are available based on income level.
Due to insurance companies widening their range of coverage, the premiums for people who already have life insurance increases. Some people find the government intrusive because they are requiring people to get life insurance. New taxes were put in place to pay for the ACA, including taxes on medical device and pharmaceutical sales. Other taxes were created for those with high income. James Roland states “The wealthy are helping to subsidize insurance for the poor. Some economists, however, predict that in the long term, the ACA will help reduce the deficit and may eventually have a positive impact on the budget.”(Healthline 1) When the ACA first launch their website there was technical problems which discourage people from signing up. Other customers had trouble signing up for the right coverage, not knowing which is best for them. Roland later
In 2010, under the Obama administration, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or what is known as Obamacare was implemented. This act was intended to provide citizens in the United States with insurance if they could not afford it beforehand. Also under ACA, a standard of coverage and the management of insurers was put into place (“Obamacare Summary” 2016). But as with everything else in life, Obamacare had its downsides. One of them being, healthy people ended up paying more for their health insurance than those
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) extended healthcare coverage to millions of formerly uninsured individuals by expanding eligibility of Medicaid and the formation of Health Insurance Marketplaces. The ACA also included reforms to assist individuals sustain coverage and have the availability of affordable and accessible private healthcare insurance. Analysis from 2014 and early 2015 and have shown significant increases in public and private healthcare insurance coverage and have attributed the remarkable decreases of the rates of uninsured individuals from marketplace.gov and health insurance exchanges from the first year the ACA had healthcare coverage available.
The primary social problem that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was enacted to address was for everyone to have insurance. The goal was to make insurance accessible to everyone and decrease the number of people without health insurance. The most important provisions of the law were preventive care, birth control, and prohibit exclusion of an individual with preexisting conditions, and Medicaid expansion. They addressed these problems by covering all well visits, making birth control free, allowing people with preexisting conditions get the help they need, and expanding Medicaid for the childless adults that are poor. According to Sanger-Katz and Bui (2016), the uninsured rate has gone down but there have been some difficulties with the Medicaid
OMarch 23, 2010 brought America's first universal health care coverage law, The Affordable Care Act (ACA) known as Obama Care (though it had nothing to do with the care of Obama). The ACA aimed to stop skyrocketing insurance plan rates, limiting coverage, capping usage, high deductibles, and denied coverage on preexisting conditions. It also addressed the issue of citizens who had only high deductible catastrophic health insurance plans, or not any health insurance at all. The ACA's objective to drive down medical costs mandated all citizens to have health care coverage. Part of the revenue was to come from health care payments made by those who hardly use medical services to provide funds to keep medical costs low for those who use medical
Where will I go when I’m sick? Who can I rely on, my government or myself? Will I have to choose between paying bills and the health of my family? The United States of America’s government’s Affordable Care Act is attempting to remove that question from every citizen’s mind. The ACA will allow lifesaving and non-emergency medical treatments to be at the fingertips of every tax paying American. It will make healthcare a right, not just a luxury. Although these may seem like outstanding qualities, is it really all that it is made out to be? “The Affordable Care Act (ACA), officially called The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), is a US law that reforms both the healthcare and health insurance industries in America. The law increases the quality, availability, and affordability of private and public health insurance to over 44 million uninsured Americans through its many provisions which include new regulations, taxes, mandates, and subsidies (PAR 2, Obamacare Facts).” With that being said, I will discuss the controversies seen from both parties in relation to the Affordable Care Act, and bring forth many important factors such as: the benefits and consequences, the cost of the ACA and the coverage actually received, and the future of the Health Care System in a world with Obamacare. The purpose of this paper is to give information in an unbiased manner in relation to the Affordable Care Act.
With 50 million uninsured Americans in 2010, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) aimed to insure nearly everyone with “minimum essential” health insurance coverage. The ACA provides that all Americans and individuals lawfully present in the United States be provided health insurance regardless of their health or financial situation. It strengthens existing forms of health insurance coverage, while building a new health insurance market for individuals and families who do not have employer coverage or another form of “minimum essential coverage” such as Medicare or Medicaid. In addition, the ACA imposes fees or assessments on health insurance providers. The fees meant to be absorbed by insurance providers will impact premiums for all individuals covered under fully insured or self-funded plans and policies.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), which was signed into law on March 23,2013 by the then President Obama, required most of the citizens and legal residents to have health insurance, it was mandated by the law. Citizens and permanent residents had to pay a fine if they were eligible to purchase health insurance through their employers or through the health exchanges, and did not buy health coverage. There were quite a few revolutionary changes that were included in the ACA among them were: Children can stay on their parents plan until the age of 26, insurance companies cannot deny coverage or increase the premiums because of a pre-existing condition, and scarping the life time maximum amount. ("Summary of affordable care act," 2010).
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was enacted in March, 2010. The purpose of this law is to reform public and private health insurance systems resulting in expanded coverage for millions of Americans by the year 2023. Full implementation of the Act, will result in a reduction of the number of uninsured U.S. citizens by more than one-half (Rosenbaum, 2011). The ACA “expands Medicaid eligibility to include all individuals and families with incomes up to 133 percent of the poverty level” (Riggin, 2013).
The affordable care act was passed into law by congress and the president in 2010. This plan was established to help all individuals obtain health insurance, regardless of having a pre-existing condition through the government marketplace as an affordable amount, or if you did not meet the set standards, was offered a state based health care coverage (HHS, 2015). Those individuals who did not have qualified medical coverage for the majority of the tax year, they would be penalized and have to pay a certain amount or a percentage based off of their income. Also under the ACA employers are now responsible, depending on how many employees are employed with their company, to offer their full time employees health care coverage, or also face a
The Affordable Care Act was passed by Congress and then signed into law by President Obama on March 23, 2010. The law was enacted in two parts: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law on March 23, 2010 and was amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act on March 30, 2010. The name “Affordable Care Act” is used to refer to the final, amended version of the law. The Act provided Americans with better health security by expanding coverage, held insurance companies accountable, lowered health care costs, guaranteed more choices and enhanced the care for all Americans (Medicaid.gov). Health insurance market places allowed shoppers to compare health plan that counted as minimum essential coverage.
In March of 2010, President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act(ACA) into law. The ACA was intended to make positive changes to healthcare in the United States. This reform requires everyone to have health insurance. It was intended as a way
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law on March 23rd, 2010 by President Barack Obama. This radical health care law was a much-needed step in comprehensive health insurance reform. Three important features of the Affordable Care Act are 1. Improving quality and lowering health care costs 2. New consumer protections and 3. Increased access to healthcare. (Key Features. 2014). Under the umbrella of these three key features additional benefits include free preventive care, drug discounts for senior citizens, increased protection against health care fraud, small business tax credits, increased access to health care through the health insurance marketplace, consumer assistance, and non-discrimination based on pre-existing conditions.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) that was signed into law in 2010 guarantees that health insurance will be more affordable and there will be increased access to care for all (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (USDHHS), 2016). It ensures that Americans have additional health