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Changes that occurred to the ACA in 2014 – Answered

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Changes that occurred to the ACA in 2014 – Answered

APA format at least one reference Question You are asked to review and discuss changes that occurred to the ACA in 2014. There were several impactful changes, tell me how you think these changes will improve or damage the act overall (Changes that occurred to the ACA in 2014 – Answered).

Answer

Changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2014: Impact Analysis

In 2014, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) underwent several significant changes aimed at expanding access to healthcare, enhancing coverage, and reducing costs. One of the most impactful changes was the implementation of the individual mandate, which required most Americans to have health insurance or face a tax penalty. This mandate aimed to broaden the insurance pool by encouraging younger and healthier individuals to enroll, thereby balancing the risk and reducing premiums for everyone (Blumenthal et al., 2015).

Another major change was the expansion of Medicaid to include all individuals with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level. This expansion was designed to cover more low-income individuals who previously fell into a coverage gap—earning too much to qualify for traditional Medicaid but too little to afford private insurance (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2019). States that adopted the Medicaid expansion saw significant reductions in uninsured rates and improved access to care.

The establishment of Health Insurance Marketplaces was also a key change in 2014. These marketplaces provided a platform for individuals and small businesses to compare and purchase insurance plans, with many qualifying for subsidies to offset costs. This increased transparency and competition among insurers, theoretically driving down prices and improving plan quality.

These changes were intended to improve the ACA by increasing coverage and making healthcare more affordable. However, there are arguments that these modifications also introduced challenges. The individual mandate faced criticism for imposing penalties on those who could not afford insurance, leading to financial strain. Additionally, while the Medicaid expansion benefited many, states that opted out left millions without coverage, exacerbating inequalities in healthcare access.

Overall, the changes in 2014 were designed to strengthen the ACA by expanding coverage and making healthcare more accessible and affordable. Despite some criticisms and implementation challenges, these modifications largely succeeded in reducing the uninsured rate and improving healthcare access for millions of Americans.

References

Blumenthal, D., Abrams, M., & Nuzum, R. (2015). The Affordable Care Act at 5 years. New England Journal of Medicine, 372(25), 2451-2458. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMhpr1503614

Kaiser Family Foundation. (2019). Medicaid expansion enrollment. https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/medicaid-expansion-enrollment-snapshot-data/

(Changes that occurred to the ACA in 2014 – Answered)

 
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Affordable Care Act Analysis

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Affordable Care Act Analysis

(Affordable Care Act Analysis)

Please Answer Base In This Answer In APA Format .Write At Least 250 Words.

1-This is a tough topic.  Here you are, a working family, you are going to school to better yourself even further and you millions of others are still faced with these decisions about health care.  When you say you pray I know you mean that literally because our daughter is in the same boat.  My husband keeps talking about wanting to retire early but he just does not understand the cost of having good health care.  I will probably be working until I am 90 because I will be afraid of Medicare and not being able to afford good care.  Wish we had better answers but we are not getting anywhere fast…that’s for sure.

 

2-The most important elements of the Affordable Care Act were to get more people insured, to keep costs down and to improve overall care and outcomes.  New laws were to make affordable health insurance available to more people.  The law would provide consumers with premium tax credits that will lower costs for households that qualify.  To qualify households must have incomes between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level. Another component was to expand the Medicaid program.  This would now cover all adults with income below 138% of the federal poverty level.  In addition, the goal was to support medical care delivery methods designed to lower costs of health care overall.

As nurses, we need to continue to be innovators and continue our work in research.  We need to focus on continuing to improve on patient safety and improving quality of care.  Nurses need to continue to be lifelong learners and meet demands of a changing society.  We must also continue to raise the bar for education with advanced degrees.  We must continue to push for more diversity in our profession to keep up with our diverse society to make patients more comfortable.  We also need to continue to bring our ideas to the table and be leaders within our organizations.  As we foster interprofessional collaboration the patients will benefit from teams working more closely together to improve patient care.

 

3-The key elements of the Affordable Care Act are the following: providing national access to healthcare coverage for the entire population from birth through retirement, this will provide coverage for about 94 percent of the American people, to improve quality, affordability and fairness of health insurance coverage, to enhance healthcare efficiency, quality, diversity and values, to reduce wasteful spending, and to improve public health by expanding clinical preventive care and community investments.

The Act focuses on improving public health by investing in primary health care, especially in medically underserved communities. It also increased insurance coverage for clinical preventive services and procedures. For instance, physical examination, annual wellness visits, well child visits, immunizations, screening exams, like colonoscopy, mammograms and cervical cancer, are all covered by insurance with no cost sharing. In addition, the development of a national preventive plan and the establishment of a Prevention and Public Health Trust Fund, to fund investments in communities that will improve public health. Further investments are being made to in school-based health programs, preventive oral health care, tobacco cessation and adding prevention planning to Medicare.

Nurses are play a vital role and a an extremely important driving force in the implementation of this law. By developing innovative care models like transition of care, home care, care management, and nurse managed clinics, nurses will improve quality of care and lower health care cost.  Also, participating in research to aid in scientific evidence-based practices which improves quality, safety and patient outcome. Advanced practices nurses help increase the availability of primary care providers and provide cost effective care. Lastly, nursing leadership will be needed to implement better workflows to reduce medication errors, improve quality and care coordination, and increasing access to medical care. For these reasons and many others, nurses are of upmost importance in the implementation process of this Act.

 
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