The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed by President Barack Obama is a significant change of the American healthcare system since insurance plans programs like Medicare and Medicaid (“Introduction to”). As a result, “It is also one of the most hotly contested, publicly maligned, and politically divisive pieces of legislation the country has ever seen” (“Introduction to”). The Affordable Care Act should be changed because it grants the government too much control over the citizen’s healthcare or the lack of individual freedom to choose affordable health insurance. This act greatly changes the American health-care system. It grants the government too much control over the healthcare of its citizens since “The Patient Protection …show more content…
and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) grants the federal government too much control over health care in America, undermining the current health care system that is appropriately based on consumer choice and free markets” (Owcharenko). The Affordable Care Act allows the government to change the health care system so it is not as relevant to each individual citizen. Furthermore, the government makes its own calculations for the act, which makes it difficult to account for individuals with high health risks (Becker). The act is not effective enough to help people who are in troublesome situations relating to their health insurance. The government should allow the more individ-ualized control over health insurance instead of controlling it on its own. The Affordable Care Act also affects medical testing with class difference conflicts arising. Some believe the act may benefit people of all financial classes since the wealthy, middle, and poor classes would benefit since they would pay less taxes if healthcare is less expensive (Harrop). They also believe the ACA “will reduce the federal deficit by more than $100 billion through 2022, which is good for taxpayers at all income levels” (Harrop). Contrary to what some may believe, the rich get better treatment compared to those with less income, causing conflict between economic classes, “Health care should never be the currency that the powerful get to trade in” (Scherz.) The act could be improved if the healthcare distribution was balanced between citizens of all economic statuses. The act is also not effective in helping families with health insurance: “For example, having health insurance is not the same thing as having access to medical care or affordable coverage. The costs of health insurance premiums and deductibles have significantly increased, leaving families in even more dire financial situations. According to research from the Manhattan Institute, health insurance premiums for people living in a number of states across the country have gone up by more than 100 percent” (Pvlich). Although health insurance may have become more available, the prices have risen, still posing a challenge to families. There are various statistics which show why The Affordable Care Act is not effective.
For example, “Nine out of 10 healthcare providers say the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will be a "step forward" in addressing long-term health issues in the United States once it is fully established, and 83 percent say it is good for Americans according to a survey by Mortenson Construction. The providers did not make an unqualified endorsement of the ACA, however. A full 86 percent say the ACA needs major changes or revisions” (“Nine Out of 10”). Although most of the health insurance providers thought the act was beneficial, the majority thought the act still needed changes. Citizens have different opinions compared to healthcare providers: “Obama wants to avoid bringing health care back into the public arena during this election season, knowing that only 25% of Americans believe that their health care will be better under ObamaCare, according to a recent Kaiser Foundation survey. This is a number similar to the 77% of physicians who want to see ObamaCare repealed” (Scherz). Since the majority of the United States do not think the Affordable Care Act would benefit their healthcare, the act needs to be changed in order to benefit the country’s
citizens.
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.
In researching this bill and the veto process, I am proud of our government in general, though I am also fearful of its power. As mentioned before, its all in the headlines. This paper has spiked my interest in what is going on with the Afordable Healthcare Act. I am very curious to push my way through the screaming mobs on either side of the isle and actually figure out if it is Constitutional. I wonder if any President before Roosevelt would have let it pass. I at least know where President Pierce would stand.
By addressing some of the negative factors of the current healthcare system, the Affordable Care Act attempts to reform the broken healthcare system.
America is known for democracy, freedom, and the American Dream. American citizens have the right to free speech, free press, the right to bear arms, and the right to religious freedom to name a few. The Declaration of Independence states that American citizens have the rights including “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” America promises equality and freedom and the protection of their rights as outlined in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. But with all the rights and freedoms that American citizens enjoy, there is one particular area where the United States seems to be lacking. That area is health care. The United States is the only industrialized nation that doesn’t have some form of legal recognition of a right to health care (Yamin 1157). Health care reform in the United States has become a major controversy for politicians, health care professionals, businesses, and citizens. Those in opposition to reform claim that health care is not a human right, therefore the government should not be involved. Supporters of reform believe that health care is most definitely a human right and should be available to everyone in the United States instead of only those who can afford it, and that it is the government’s responsibility to uphold that right.
In recent years, the number of Americans who are uninsured has reached over 45 million citizens, with millions more who only have the very basic of insurance, effectively under insured. With the growing budget cuts to medicaid and the decreasing amount of employers cutting back on their health insurance options, more and more americans are put into positions with poor health care or no access to it at all. At the heart of the issue stems two roots, one concerning the morality of universal health care and the other concerning the economic effects. Many believe that health care reform at a national level is impossible or impractical, and so for too long now our citizens have stood by as our flawed health-care system has transformed into an unfixable mess. The good that universal healthcare would bring to our nation far outweighs the bad, however, so, sooner rather than later, it is important for us to strive towards a society where all people have access to healthcare.
Lastly, a fifth reason Americans disfavor universal health care is because conservative lawmakers have poisoned their minds with the belief that it would mean lower salaries, higher taxes, longer wait times, and run-down government hospital facilities (Light 2003). Due to the information received by legislation and put out there in the media, it’s no surprise why, in the year 2015, lawmakers are still debating universal health care and trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Although the United States has recently undergone health care reform, which has enabled many Americans to gain access to affordable health insurance, the system is still nowhere near perfect.
In the 2012 Presidential Debates over the Affordable Care Act President Barack Obama said “If you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan.” But this, in fact, is not the case. Barack Obama mislead voters into believing they could keep their health insurance if you were among the 85% already happily insured. His message was, “ObamaCare will affect the other people, not you” (Troy). ...
In America the affordability and equality of access to healthcare is a crucial topic of debate when it comes to one's understanding of healthcare reform. The ability for a sick individual to attain proper treatment for their ailments has reached the upper echelons of government. Public outcry for a change in the handling of health insurance laws has aided in the establishment of the Affordable Healthcare Law (AHCL) to ensure the people of America will be able to get the medical attention they deserve as well as making that attention more affordable, as the name states. Since its creation, the AHCL has undergone scrutiny towards its effects on the government and its people; nevertheless, the new law must not be dismantled due to its function as a cornerstone of equal-opportunity healthcare, and if such a removal is allowed, there will be possibly detrimental effects on taxes, the economy, and poor people.
The Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as Obamacare, is a new health policy created by the American federal government. Its purpose is to make healthcare more affordable and friendly for the people. Unfortunately in some way that does not prove to be the case. It is becoming apparent that Obama may have made some misleading statements to help get the ACA put into action. The ACA is sprinkled with many flaws that call for a reform such as people’s current plans being terminated, high costs, and at minimum some people’s hours being cut by their employers.
After the inception of ACA that is Affordable Care Act on March 23, 2010 various policies and regulations has been proposed which has more controversy (www.healthcapital.com, 2013). Affordable health act has impact on the stakeholders in different manner. The main concern in the medical field is the input cost which is increasing continuously. This is the biggest challenge for the US government as the increasing cost makes it impossible for the government to allocate appropriate resources in managing the requirements of the ACA public policy. There are more initiatives taken by the US government in implementing the ACA in an appropriate manner by continuously improving the quality of health care at affordable lower costs (www.healthcapital.com, 2013). According to Kaiser Health Tracking Poll conducted in March 2013, about 40% of the public are against the ACA and 37% are supporting the ACA which satisfies the legislative requirements (www.healthcapital.com, 2013). Key issue in health care industry is the quality of doctors and the number of doctors available, this ACA mainly aims to address the issue of all citizens especially poor. The constituency of the act makes the US government to think about the Supreme Court Judgement about emphasising all citizens should have health insurance (NYTimes, 2014).
Healthcare reform comes down to the question: Is healthcare a right or a privilege? Many countries around the world have decided that healthcare is a right and that every citizen of their country should have healthcare coverage despite affordability or medical needs. The U.S. has not provided free healthcare to its citizens. Our system of healthcare has been one of a privilege. The U.S. ensures universal availability to basic, life-saving treatment in emergency rooms but the U.S does not ensure availability to more cost-effective, comprehensive, and preventive treatments. Emergency physicians and primary care physicians all agree that the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), which focuses on assuring access to emergency care, but doesn’t ensure that health care is a right for all citizens of the U.S. across all health care settings.
The Obama Care, also known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has a potential to improve health care. This law made health care more accessible to citizens because it inhibits insurers to deny insurance, institutes the individual and employer mandate, established lower standards for health plans, and provides an affordable health coverage to low income families and individuals. Furthermore, to foster a higher quality health care delivery system, the new law created an amendment to the Medicare payment program (Martin, 2015). However, the lawmakers must increase the citizens’ awareness of the law and encourage the other states not participating in the program.
This outrageous law must undergo an extreme annulment in order to restore peace to the price of health care premiums, and to relieve everyone of carrying around the heavy burden of this deceitful enactment. President Obama and his Health Care Act are going to constantly be increasing the prices of everyones health care. From giving big businesses ultimatums between heavy taxes or dropping health coverage, all the way to increasing an elderly womans cost of insurance by ten fold. Above its price is the fact of how the President and all of his “co-workers” led everyone to believe that this was something that was to help this country with its health care struggles, and could not follow through with what he said. This law has been evasive and deceptive, and deserved to be exposed to the public.
Life is full of uncertainties. Risk lurks in every nook and corner of human life. In short, life is unpredictable. We need to be prepared for such circumstances. Leading a happy life, involves good planning and analysis for your personal health. Accidents do happen and you need to be prepared for such situations. In times of high health cost, you need to get covered for health risks.
In 1991, fewer than one percent of Americans felt that health care was an important issue. Just two years later, President Clinton urged Congress to help him fix a health care system that "is badly broken" (Collins 78). Is the health care system badly broken? The health care reform debate has captured the attention of all Americans. What brought health care reform into the public spotlight? Although our medical care in this country is of the highest quality, our access to that care is waning due to higher and higher costs. Our health care system needs fundamental reform. Currently, there are dozens of reform packages in Congress, yet three packages offer significant recommendations toward health care reform: President Clinton's Health Security Act, Representative Jim Cooper's Managed Competition Act, and Senator John Chaffee's Health Equity and Reform Access Today Act. The final health care reform package must include the choice aspects of all three of these proposals.