Medicaid provides medical benefits to individuals and families to receive healthcare due to lower incomes, and there are more children with Medicaid benefits in the state of Louisiana. Working families apply for this benefit because they are unable to afford healthcare for their families. Applying for this benefit does not consider that person to be unemployed or unfit; some individuals simply cannot afford to have the additional funds taken out of their pay. The parents of those children want their families to have medical benefits for health, personal, or accidental purposes. Governor Jindal would be failing the state of Louisiana by resisting Medicaid expansion and leaving millions of residents without healthcare. Although some parents are irresponsible, the child should not have to suffer due to their parents’ choices. Also, the elderly should not have to suffer because they will need Medicare benefits once they are unable to work and care for themselves. As the Governor of this state, his job should be to protect and help the residents of Louisiana, not hurt those with lower incomes. Medicaid is not hurting the state, but resistance to the Medicaid expansion would not be the better choice. According to the Department of Health and Hospitals, Medicaid provides medical benefits to low income individuals and families. Over one million residents are receiving healthcare coverage through Medicaid, and the majority of those residents are children under the age of 19. Federal Poverty Level income guidelines determine Medicaid eligibility along with receiving Supplemental Security Income from the Social Security Administration or financial help from the Office of Family Support through Family Independence Temporary... ... middle of paper ... ...siana, but for others in the country. Part of me believes that individuals should learn to be more responsible and independent, but I do not believe it would be fair to leave those individuals without health either. Also, for parents who do work, sometimes healthcare is too much for them to have for their families which may cause them to look into Medicaid programs along with the new healthcare reform. Those parents should not be penalized along with their children. The elderly should also have a chance in having health coverage as well because some of them worked hard majority of their lives to obtain Medicare benefits once they were retired. Hopefully, politicians can come together to make Medicaid and this reform effective instead of just ruling it out. With all ideas, they can probably make this program a success even though many did not agree with it.
One of the most controversial topics in the United States in recent years has been the route which should be undertaken in overhauling the healthcare system for the millions of Americans who are currently uninsured. It is important to note that the goal of the Affordable Care Act is to make healthcare affordable; it provides low-cost, government-subsidized insurance options through the State Health Insurance Marketplace (Amadeo 1). Our current president, Barack Obama, made it one of his goals to bring healthcare to all Americans through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. This plan, which has been termed “Obamacare”, has come under scrutiny from many Americans, but has also received a large amount of support in turn for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons include a decrease in insurance discrimination on the basis of health or gender and affordable healthcare coverage for the millions of uninsured. The opposition to this act has cited increased costs and debt accumulation, a reduction in employer healthcare coverage options, as well as a penalization of those already using private healthcare insurance.
health care, only those who are “privileged” enough to afford health care can receive it. So is this what health care in the United States is and should be?Arnold Schwarzenegger the former Governor of California stated “Health care is not a right, but its cause is a government interference in the healthcare system. The solution is to leave doctors, patients and insurance companies free to deal with each other on whatever terms they choose, not to socialize American medicine” (Russo). Schwarzenegger then went on about how this would cost the government too much money and that this is not the answer to the healthcare improvement (Russo). Sen. Shelia Keuhl, the senator that wrote the bill stated in a press release “It’s important to understand that vetoes of health reform legislation have very serious consequences […] Because of these vetoes, there will continue to be very little regulation of the runaway health insurance market and no protections for consumers”
The aim of affordable care act (ACA) was to extend health insurance coverage to around 15% of US population who lack it. These include people with no coverage from their employers and don’t have coverage by US health programs like Medicaid (Retrieved from, https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/affordable-care-act/). To achieve this, the law required all Americans to have health insurance which is a reason of controversy because, it was inappropriate intrusion of government into the massive health care industry and insult to personal liberty. To make health care more affordable subsidies are offered and the cost of the insurance was supposed to be reduced by bringing younger, healthier people to the health insurance system. This could be controversial, if older, sicker people who need the coverage most enter the market but younger group decline to do so. The insurance pool will be unbalanced and the cost of coverage will rise correspondingly.
Expanded and strengthened state private insurance companies are to be expected since more younger Texans enter the market thanks to the premium support. Texas can expect savings through more proper use of medical care, lower numbers in Medicaid, and savings from increased recipient cost sharing. Texas must refuse to comply with the new high-risk pools. There are many reasons Texas should not comply but the main reason is poor design. Currently, eighteen states have decided not to participate in these pools, Texas is undecided. Any person with a pre-existing medical disorder whom has been without insurance for six month will qualify. The law gave the Department of Health discretion in determining with conditions qualifies. Theoretically, the Department of Health could say the flu is a pre existing medical condition. If Texas does not refuse to comply with these pools it is only a matter of time before the demand will exceed the supply. A huge concern is when the funding is gone what do the state politicians do. I see two options. One, state officials will end the coverage all together and pull the plug. Two, continue to allow the program to run with the use of state tax dollars.
Health care inequality has long been customary in the United States. Those in lower classes have higher morbidity, higher mortality, higher infant mortality, and higher disability. Millions of low-income families and individuals have gone with out the care they need simply because they cannot afford it. Denial of benefits due to pre-existing conditions, outrageous deductibles, and unreasonable prescription prices are in large part why the low-income class suffers. In addition, not receiving preventative health care, lack of access to exercise equipment and lack of availability to fresh foods all create health problems that become to expensive to fix. Low-income families need to have better, more affordable access to health care, specifically preventative health care, and be more educated about the benefits of health care in order to narrow the gap of inequality. The new Affordable Care Act under the Obama administration expands heath care coverage to many low income families and individuals by lowering the eligibility requirements for Medicaid, although it is not mandatory for individual states to make this expansion for Medicaid coverage.(CITE) It also requires that preventative health care be included in coverage by insurance companies. So with all the benefits the expansion of Medicaid could offer, why would some states choose not to offer it?
What exactly is Medicaid? Medicaid is the largest health insurance in the United States, and it services many low-income families. This government health program is state regulated and varies among states due to having their own guidelines. Medicaid was signed into law on July the 30th, 1965. Medicaid’s guidelines come from the old Welfare law. “Medicaid has never matched that of food stamps, for which eligibility standards are linked to financial need alone. As Smith and Moore explains, the federal government, using its extraordinary demonstration powers under section 1115 of the Social Security Act, has allowed states to experiment with “decategorization” over the years, but Medicaid’s statutory bar against coverage of poor adults remains perhaps its most obvious failure” (Rosenbaum). Regardless of the many faults of this programs design, Medicaid helps close to 60 million low-income families in the United States. The people it helps would include: pregnant women, young children and their parents, the disabled, and the elderly, and other members of society that have low income. Medicaid is involved in many pregnancies and newborn care from a financial standpoint. It allows parents to have medical care for the child while in a low-income household. Medicaid has a huge impact on each states health systems and is used in a wide variety of ways.
Summary: Medicaid for Millionaires briefly touches on one of the many problems facing the U.S. and its current Medicaid policy. The articles begins by acknowledging the fact that Medicaid was originally formed in 1965 with the intent of providing medical care just for the poor, and how lately this hasn’t been the case. Today were finding out how more of societies upper-class are discovering ways to receive Medicaid benefits as well. The system is being called “Asset-Shifting”, were anyone is allowed to give away most of their assets (no matter the cost) to someone else and three years later claim the same medical benefits being set aside for the poor. As quoted in the article “there’s an entire industry being dedicated to making sure that other taxpayers, not they, be responsible for paying the nursing-home needs of the rich“. Though morally questionable, more and more Medical Planners today directly counsel their well-off clients on how to take advantage of this loop-hole in our system. A more troubling fact is that of the 100% of the less fortunate that occupy the scarcer Medicaid beds being provided by the government, 70% of those in well kept nursing homes receive the same exact Medicaid benefits. Many government officials have tried to stop this on going trend by passing laws during the 90’s that required states to recover the cost of benefits from the estates of those who attempt asset shifting, however failing miserably due to half-hearted efforts.
Implemented (along with Medicare) as a part of the Social Security Amendments of 1965, Medicaid’s original purpose was to improve the health of the working poor who might otherwise go without medical care for themselves and their families. Medicaid also assisted low income seniors with cautionary provisions that paid for the costs of nursing facility care and other medical expenses such as premiums and copayments that were not covered through Medicare. Eligibility for Medicaid is usually based on the family’s or individual’s income and assets. When the ACA came into effect in 2010, it began to work with the states to develop a plan to better coordinate the two ...
An option for folks who have no money is Medicaid. Medicaid is designed for the very poor people. Unfortunately you must meet Medicaid guidelines in order to be eligible for it. “In order to be eligible you must make below the poverty level that the government allows, this is about $1,497 a month for a single person, also if you are a child who is under 19, if you are pregnant, if you are out of work for a long time, or if you are HIV positive, you may be eligible to apply.” These guidelines alone generally rule out many of Americans. “The U.S. Census reported young adults (18-to-24 years old) remained the least likely of any age group to have health insurance in 2001.” More than 28% of this group does not have coverage.
...ple less than or equal to 133% of the FPL, starting 2014 eligibility will be expanded to people that are 138% or les of the FPL. Also the expansion will cover more parents and expand to adults who are childless. Fore states that choose to accept the expansion this means that they will have to cover more individuals in their Medicaid programs. The government will provide 100% funding for the first 3 years of the Medicaid expansion; thereafter the states will have to figure out how they will fund the program with the absence of federal funding. The stipulation with expanding Medicaid that after the three years are up the state cannot modify the program to not cover the expanding individuals. States that in financial ruins before the ACA, now with the expansion they will need to find alternative ways that will serve the same purpose as Medicaid in order to lower cost.
The author also believes that the Medicaid expansion extends beyond the politics, and has an aim to impact the life, health, and financial stability for the state and individuals. Medicaid expansion can be beneficial to many countries that have a large proportion of low-income people that are uninsured and or with disabilities. This can aid in saving the state money because much of the cost is provided and covered by the federal government, that encourages healthier behavior and results to a reduction in chronic disease due to lower health care costs. Although Texas opted out in adopting the expansion, legislators should decide on the advantage and disadvantage of participating in the Medicaid expansion to improve the welfare of the state. The expansion of Medicaid coverage will give low-income pregnant women the chance to reduce the rate in infant mortality and provide an opportunity for those that were unable to get coverage to be
Medicaid supports children who are under the age of nineteen, people over the age of sixty five, enrollees who are disabled and those that need permanent nursing home care. Potential beneficiaries can find an application for Medicaid at their State’s Medicaid agency (Medicare.gov, 2008).
Although some people are against socialized healthcare because of their misguided conception of the American dream, need to feel superior to others, and belief that it creates government dependency, the need and benefit of this reform outweighs those claims. We can still be America with a different healthcare system. The want to feel superior to another is what causes inequalities to our country and its policies. Government decency is not something new but it won’t be encouraged by socialized health care and is not an original ideal of someone who is unemployed.
Poverty in America is measured using thresholds and guidelines that are updated each year so that we have a more accurate picture of who is in need. Using these standards it is then decided who is impoverished. According to the Institute for Research on Poverty (2013) a family of four, who makes less than $23,492 in a year, are considered poor. There are numerous federal programs provided by the government that are designed to help those who are in need. Some of these programs provide food stamps, free lunches, Medicaid, Head Start, and rent assistance. Although these programs are helpful to people who need them they do not entirely prevent children from the consequences of being poor.