The United States government has taken several approaches over the years to ensure that the health care facilities are inclined to its citizen's needs. The Affordable Care Act of 2010 is one of the landmarks in health care improvement (Williams, 2016). This Act paved the way for a National Prevention Strategy. This approach provides the required grounds for disease control and prevention for all citizens. It does so while focusing on the accessibility of affordable health care, lower costs, and payment options for the citizens that are not covered by any health policy. Policymakers should primarily focus on the affordability of health services as a health promotion procedure (Conklin, Morris, & Nolte, 2015). The American population is diverse and well distributed among the States. Successful health policy should put into consideration the prevention strategies and the availability of adequate resources for health care purposes.
The US is among the most developed countries with massive spending in the health care sector. Research shows that by 2009, America’s expenditure on health care had reached 2.5 trillion dollars (Jackon, Melaganos, & Alamantriotou, 2016). The economic growth, industrialization, globalization, and success in international trade are some of the things that make the health care system of the US complicated to manage. The economically stable populations have access to better health care programs information and facilities, hence their health is safeguarded. As for the other part of the people, the life-threatening situations make it difficult to access the required standards of health care. The policymakers should specifically focus on factors surrounding the institution of care (Polonski et al., 2017). Such include the day-to-day activities of the population, the social status, income generated and the environmental factors. These factors if well-coordinated can lead to a healthy and stable society.
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The policymakers should focus on the environmental factors affecting the population to promote quality health care. A clean well-maintained environment enhances healthy lifestyles. Supporting a healthy community will be a successful endeavor if the water and air are less polluted, the infrastructure allows people to be active and healthy, and the institutions offer their employees medical covers and safer working environments (Jackson, Maleganos, & Alamantariotou, 2016). The schools should provide students with healthy meal plans and wellness programs. Promotion of health should be directed towards significant health care predictors.
Achievement of Cost Saving Strategies
The cost of health care should be sustainable and achievable to all the citizens despite their economic status. The government has invested vast amounts of money in disease prevention centers, laboratories, and research centers. This move is remarkable, but disease awareness and prevention does not guarantee a disease-free population. Policymakers should put more efforts into the Affordable Care Act. They should have measures put in place to track the progress of the health facilities. The funds allocated to health care platforms should benefit the general population. The nonfunctional avenues should be investigated and realigned to ensure the citizen’s needs are met (Conklin, Morris, & Nolte, 2015). Despite economic development, America ranks lower than most developing countries in healthy life indicators. The nation still experiences high infant mortality and low life expectancy.
The affordability of health care should not only focus on the elderly and the disabled. It should cut across all aspects and age groups of the population. The more financial focus should be given to communities with higher health disparities (Polonski et al., 2017). Areas that have a health-threatening factor should be at the forefront of receiving less costly health services. The policymakers should come up with clearly formulated prevention strategies. These strategies should ensure that diseases and health complications are foreseen and if possible prevented before they happen. This approach saves on the cost of treatment and boosts the productivity of the citizens in their workplaces.
How the Government Reflects Public Policy
The government has put in place major public policy initiatives. There are four primary health care initiatives supported by the government in America. These programs are as follows: Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Department of Defense TRICARE, Medicare and Medicaid, and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) (Williams, 2016). The government ensures that funds are allocated to these programs annually and are in operation. The efforts shown by the United States government depict the willingness of the government to ensure its citizens are healthy. The federal government emphasizes on the arising shortcomings in safety and health care quality in the country.
Several institutions are being funded to train health care givers such as dentists, nurses, doctors and other physicians that deal with offering primary care. The National Association of community health centers were concerned that 56 million Americans are exposed to areas with inadequate health care givers. This population is characterized by financial shortages and scanty facilities (Polinski et al., 2017). The government in collaboration with the National Prevention policy members has put more efforts in ensuring every area has a community health care center, and the population is aware of the health implications of their actions and how to handle emergencies. The country has experienced a decrease in the number of health care graduates over the years as a result of the big income gap between the professions. Surgeons and other high-level physicians receive higher incomes as compared to nurses and social workers. The federal efforts aimed at improved primary care is working on better working conditions for the medical practitioners and employee motivation theories.
The Patients Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)
The 11th United States Congress approved the bill which was drafted by Obama hence deriving the nickname Obamacare. It became effective on the 23rd of May 2010 (Williams, 2016). This act has faced opposition from the Republicans and other legal arrangements. It has proved to have better results despite the opposition. It protects individuals with preexisting conditions from being denied a health cover. It is said to be useful for 10years running from 2010 to 2020 although it came into full functionality in 2014. This act mandates that primary health care services are provided to those in need, the facilities are inclusive of hospitalization, Medicinal support, emergency services, checkups, mental health, and rehabilitative care despite the individual’s financial or social background.
Obamacare supports the provision of various women-oriented treatments at a lower fee. These services include screenings, fertility procedures and counseling for women with reproductive in capabilities across all institutions with the exemption to religious institutions. The act is against the abuse of policy holders, insurers are not allowed to drop insurance policies on their holders if they get sick within their premium paying period (Williams, 2016). Preventive care vaccinations and medication are not subjected to the financial capabilities of the patients. The law has worked towards offering less costly health care services to the people. The country has experienced increased life expectancy due to the accessibility of health care services at cheaper rates. Patients with life-threatening chronic diseases can continue their medication despite their financial status. Individuals with gestational diabetes, colonoscopies, mammogram breastfeeding support, HIV and STI counseling and screening and counseling for domestic violence victims are paid for by the government. The patients do not have to pay to receive these services.
The sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics rank among the top useful platforms under the Act. Surveys indicate a reduction in transmission and spread of the STDs as a result of regular visits to the clinics and the counseling services. The population is more aware of the prevention methods and ways to handle the diseases (Conklin, Morris, & Nolte, 2015). Low-income earners and families can now access medical services beyond their financial level with the help of the Act, and lower insurance premiums which have increased the rate of service delivery in the health care facilities as more of the population can access the services.
Women and young people are exposed to better health care facilities. The situation has led to high mortality rates and increased the population. Since there are better health care facilities and high productivity in profitability, pregnant women can access better health care facilities and life-enhancing services. This situation has led to increased infrastructure and population in the country. Insurance companies have grown in their efforts to meet government requirements. This process has led to better living standards for the employees and other companies related to the firms (Jackson, Maleganos, & Alamantariotou, 2016). The firms have better services and welfare programs for their employees which has led to growth and expansion in the insurance industry. The elderly and senior citizens have been taken care of. Medicare services are protected resulting in high life expectancy and better services.
The patient and the protection act has imposed higher taxes on American citizens and organizations. The population has to pay taxes to fund the functionality of this act. This taxes may take the form of increased prices of consumer goods and services. They may also be in terms of lower costs of labor leading to lower salaries and high premiums. This health reform provision is likely to affect the living standards of the general population. Employers are mandated to accommodate and sustain wellness programs on behalf of their employees which has a more significant effect on the marginal returns of small businesses (Williams, 2016). The businesses are experiencing higher variable costs compared to the incomes. As a result, companies are employing staffs on a part-time basis to avoid paying the premiums towards their health policies.
Recommendations for the Patient Protection Act
The federal government should enhance public awareness. The population does not fully know most of the issues addressed in the Act. For instance, women are not fully aware of the options they have in the contraceptive coverage clause. They are limited to specific areas such as screening and safety and blank on others. The act should work closely with the National Quality Strategy on enhancing the provision of cardiovascular health care services (Polonski et al., 2017). The facilities are known for their high values and expensive procedures. The government can provide incentives on some of the provisions. The act should also integrate the behavioral, complementary and clinical aspects to ensure the services provided cover the full circle of the patient’s life while maximizing the physician’s capabilities.
Patient Protection and Affordable care act ought to make it favorable for small companies to grow. One way of attaining the goal is by offering tax credits to the employers for specified periods of times depending on the fluctuations in the market. The law may also make efforts on broadening the purchasing power of goods and services offered by these companies to ensure productivity and sufficient income generation (Jackson, Maleganos, & Alamantariotou, 2016). This strategy will not only grow the economy but also give the companies enough profits to sustain employee’s covers hence funding the health reform. The federal government should set up basic business rules required for the administration of the Affordable Care Act policies. This rules should promote open conversations between the parties involved as well as the constant flow of communication.
The patients should be provided with a way of accessing information on their eligibility, programs and coverage options which will help them monitor their health progress in the health facilities. The system can be electronic to facilitate the exchange of information between the patients and the physicians. It will give the federal government better avenues for data collection and evaluation of the success of the bill.
References
Conklin, A., Morris, Z., & Nolte, E. (2015). What is the evidence base for public involvement in health ‐ care policy?: results of a systematic scoping review. Health Expectations , 18 (2), 153-165.
Jackson, S., Maleganos, J., & Alamantariotou, K. (2016). 8 Lessons from sustainable entrepreneurship towards social innovation in health care. Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation , 143.
Polinski,J., Kowal, M., Gagnon,M., Brennan, T., & Shrank,W. (2017). Home infusion: Safe, clinically effective, patient preferred, and cost saving. Health Care ,5 (1-2), 68-80. doi: 10.1016/j.hjdsi.2016.04.004
Williams, J.(2016). The Patient ProtectionandAffordable Care Act Meets the ‘Persistently Uninsured’. Social Policy& Administration, 50 (4), 452-466. doi: 10.1111/spol.12238
