NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Sample Answer for NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Included After Question

Regardless of political affiliation, individuals often grow concerned when considering perceived competing interests of government and their impact on topics of interest to them. The realm of healthcare is no different. Some people feel that local, state, and federal policies and legislation can be either helped or hindered by interests other than the benefit to society.

Consider for example that the number one job of a legislator is to be reelected. Cost can be measured in votes as well as dollars. Thus, it is important to consider the legislator’s perspective on either promoting or not promoting a certain initiative in the political landscape.

NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

To Prepare:

Review the Resources and reflect on efforts to repeal/replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Consider who benefits the most when policy is developed and in the context of policy implementation.

By Day 3 of Week 3

Post an explanation for how you think the cost-benefit analysis in terms of legislators being reelected affected efforts to repeal/replace the ACA. Then, explain how analyses of the voters views may affect decisions by legislative leaders in recommending or positioning national policies (e.g., Congress’ decisions impacting Medicare or Medicaid). Remember, the number one job of a legislator is to be re-elected. Please check your discussion grading rubric to ensure your responses meet the criteria.

By Day 6 of Week 3

Respond to at least two of your colleagues* on two different days by expanding on their explanation and providing an example that supports their explanation or respectfully challenging their explanation and providing an example.

*Note: Throughout this program, your fellow students are referred to as colleagues.

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 3 Discussion Rubric

A Sample Answer For the Assignment: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Title: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

The Health Care Affordability Act has been the topic of many discussions in healthcare and in politics. The Affordable Care Act, which is also known as Obamacare, was signed into law on March 23, 2010 by President Barack Obama. The law was to provide consumers with subsidies or premium tax credits that lower costs for households with incomes between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level. President Obama placed a federal tax penalty on Americans that did not have healthcare coverage during his term in office while placing higher tax in other areas to compensate for the economic debt that was to come. When President Trump was in office, he took the federal tax penalty away from the Americans. Both Presidents had the same agenda, all Americans to get healthcare coverage, they just had different approaches addressing healthcare.

According to H.R. 369- Health Care Affordability Act of 2021, sponsored by Rep. Lauren Underwood, the bill revises the tax credit for health care premium assistance to expand the eligibility of low-income taxpayers for such credit and reduce the cost of health care premiums in which was introduced to the house on January 19, 2021 (Congress.gov). On January 4, 2021 Rep. David Joyce introduced the continuing coverage for preexisting conditions act of 2021 to the house. The bill stated, “severability between provisions relating to the requirement to maintain minimum essential health care coverage (i.e., the individual mandate) and other provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” (Congress.gov). “Specifically, the bill provides that if the individual mandate is found to be illegal or incapable of being enforced, such findings do not affect the validity of other provisions relating to (1) the availability and renewability of coverage, or (2) the prohibitions against discriminatory coverage practices based on preexisting conditions or health status” (Congress.gov). When the Affordable Care Act was put into law it addressed health care costs, health insurance coverage and preventive care measures. 

“Elections matter on another level, too” (Milstead & Short, pg. 39). “As the newly elected Trump administration began to take shape, much rhetoric focused on the future of significant policy positions taken by the Obama administration as well as on the future of Medicare and Medicaid” (Milstead & Short, pg. 39). All votes matter within all elections, we as the people have a say as to who we place into office and rather or not we agree with their agenda. When looking at any office in which an election is held, we must know what our candidates stand for and what their goal is. “Obamacare was in the headlines as Republicans saw their opportunity to finally repeal a law that had long been a thorn in their sides” (Milstead & Short, pg. 39). “Before the Republican majority had even been sworn in, debate began to rage about how to make the changes: repeal and replace Obamacare immediately, repeal immediately and replace later, or repeal later after a replacement strategy has been determined” (Milstead & Short, pg. 39). Changes to Medicare and Medicaid are likely to get passed with future elections as politicians try to win the votes of the people. Within this class so far and all the readings in which I have done, I am learning the differences in what the local, state, and federal laws are controlled by. I also have a better understanding as to what should be addressed at the states’ capital versus Washington, DC. It matters who we put into office, rather it be for president or governor, or Senate and House of Representatives. We need to have a clear understanding of their roles and what they influence or support. Depending on where the candidate stands on certain issues will determine if he/she will be re-elected or not. “Every nurse should know the identity of his or her U.S. senators and congressional representative” (Milstead & Short, pg. 44). They want to win the population of the people, but I am also a believer that people will say and do what they need to in order to get into office and get what they want. That goes back to checks and balances or risk and benefits. And I scratch your back, you scratch mine.

References

Congress.gov. (n.d.) Retrieved on March 9, 2021 at https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/housebill/369?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22affordable+care+act  %22%5D%7D&r=1&s=2

Milstead, J. A. & Short, N. A. (2019) Health Policy and Politics: A Nurses Guide 

(6thed) Jones & Bartlett Learning

A Sample Answer 2 For the Assignment: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Title: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

I concur with my colleague that Health Care Affordability is a significant topic of concern in American politics, with important debates ranging from the underlying costs of healthcare and universal health care coverage. President Obama and Trump had the same agenda of getting healthcare coverage for all Americans, but with a different strategy. The primary aim of health care coverage is to protect all Americans from the financial burden of accessing quality healthcare (Alvarez et al., 2018). Nearly 90% of the American population has health insurance, close to half get their insurance from their employers, and a third receive their coverage from government programs like Medicaid or Medicare, and 5% purchase their insurance on the individual market (Labrum et al., 2017). It is approximated that one-half of the uninsured American population are eligible for eligible for healthcare insurance through existing programs. Some policymakers consider the present federal programs on healthcare coverage as too generous and inappropriately burdening the taxpayers. These individuals support the reduction of the generosity of those programs, especially Medicaid, that subsidize individual market coverage. Trump was a key supporter of these proposals. Other policymakers support approaches that would widen the eligibility of the existing coverage programs. Most Democratic presidential candidates have supported these strategies.

I agree with my colleague that all voters matter in the election process. The right to vote is considered one of the cornerstones of democracy; with the 21st century, the recognition of this right seems to be beyond debate (Badas, & Stauffer, 2019). The people have a responsibility to exercise their democratic rights by voting for a person of their choice. The voters are tasked to understand the ideologies and principles of the person they are voting for. Good practice requires the voters to familiarize themselves with the issues being advocated for by the different candidates.

References

Alvarez, E. M., Keegan, T. H., Johnston, E. E., Haile, R., Sanders, L., Wise, P. H.,& Chamberlain, L. J. (2018). The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act dependent coverage expansion: disparities in impact among young adult oncology patients. Cancer, 124(1), 110-117. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.30978

Badas, A., & Stauffer, K. E. (2019). Voting for women in nonpartisan and partisan elections. Electoral Studies, 57, 245-255. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2018.10.004

Labrum, J. T., Paziuk, T., Rihn, T. C., Hilibrand, A. S., Vaccaro, A. R., Maltenfort, M. G., & Rihn, J. A. (2017). Does Medicaid insurance confer adequate access to adult orthopaedic care in the era of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act? Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 475(6), 1527-1536. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11999-017-5263-3

A Sample Answer 3 For the Assignment: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Title: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was enacted in 2010, and it considerably changed the U.S. health care landscape. The goals of the ACA were to make insurance coverage more affordable, reduce the number of uninsured, and expand access to care. To attain these goals, the ACA expanded eligibility for Medicaid and established new marketplaces where Americans without employer coverage could purchase policies directly from insurers (Oberlander, 2017). The ACA faced strong opposition from Republicans, who described it as unrealistic because it required every American to have medical insurance (Oberlander, 2017). When the Trump administration took power in 2017, the president and Congress members of the Republican Party vowed to replace the ACA. However, one year after taking office, Republicans could not agree on whether to repeal the ACA immediately, repeal right away and replace it later, or repeal it later after establishing a replacement strategy (Oberlander, 2017).  Although the Republicans repealed parts of the ACA, including the budgetary and fiscal provisions, they did not replace it.

The Senate Republicans’ failure to honor their promise of passing a bill to replace ACA, can be attributed to the unpopularity of this bill to the public. The legislators had to assess the political impact of repealing the ACA with no replacement on their chances of being reelected (McCarthy, 2017). They had to perform a cost-benefit analysis on the cost of repealing the ACA on the future chance of being reelected and the benefits of repealing it. For instance, if the Senate replaced the ACA right away, with no replacement, the number of uninsured Americans would increase drastically, which would be opposed by their voters (McCarthy, 2017). This would negatively affect the public view of the lawmakers on their constituents, and lower their odds of being reelected if they did not have a better plan to replace the ACA.  Besides, the cost-benefit analysis can explain why the Republicans had two canceled votes in March 2017 and had to introduce a new amendment to the American Health Care Act to unite the party behind the bill (McCarthy, 2017). The failure to replace the ACA as promised shows that lawmakers can be unwilling to support bills that are a potential threat to their election results in upcoming elections.

Legislative leaders’ decisions regarding recommending or positioning national policies are often influenced by their voters’ views. Voters are known to influence legislators’ policy choices and are at times forced to compromise their choices including partisan politicians (Pacheco & Maltby, 2017). Lawmakers have to consider their voters’ views before making a policy decision that affects their constituents to maintain a positive public image (Pacheco & Maltby, 2017). In the case the voters’ views contradict a legislator’s decision regarding a policy, the lawmaker is forced to compromise their position on the policy and move to the center.

Failing to take the voters’ views can have negative consequences on the law maker’s future elections. Furthermore, to continue supporting and voting for a legislator in future elections constituents must remain convinced that their lawmaker is listening to them and consider their views (Pacheco & Maltby, 2017). For instance, members of congress had to assess the voters’ view on repealing the ACA provisions that would cut funding for Medicaid or change Medicaid to a block grant program. Since many Americans benefited from the expansion of Medicaid, it affected Congress’ decision to pass bills that would hinder their voters’ access to the program and ultimately affect their public image.

References

McCarthy, M. (2017). U.S Republican attempt to repeal and replace Affordable Care Act collapses. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j3508

Oberlander, J. (2017). Repeal, replace, repair, retreat—Republicans’ health care quagmire. New England Journal of Medicine, 377(11), 1001-1003.

Pacheco, J., & Maltby, E. (2017). The role of public opinion—does it influence the diffusion of ACA decisions?. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 42(2), 309-340.https://doi.org/10.1215/03616878-3766737

A Sample Answer 4 For the Assignment: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Title: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

I agree with my colleague that the health care movement and the right to health in the US is facing renewed relevance in the political arena, with debates on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Since enactment ACA has focused on widening the number of people with health insurance coverage in the US. Notably, the number of uninsured people who have received health insurance under ACA is approximated to be 20 million (Alvarez et al., 2018). ACA has also reduced the financial burden related to healthcare. In terms of gender parity, ACA offers coverage of maternity and reproductive health services and prohibits the practice of charging women higher premiums than men for healthcare insurance. With these strides, ACA has also received tremendous criticisms, particularly from members of the Republican Party. The ACA opponents associate it with tax increases, higher insurance premiums, additional workload placed on healthcare providers, and reduction of employees’ hours to avoid covering their health insurance (Nikpay et al., 2018). The failure of the legislators to repeal or replace ACA law demonstrates that lawmakers might not be comfortable supporting bills that are a potential threat to their re-election.

I also concur with my colleague that the views of the voters determine lawmakers’ decisions to support a political issue. In cases where the views of the constituents contradict those of the lawmakers, the lawmakers might be forced to go against their position. Most notably, lawmakers want to remain in office and be continually re-elected. They must be aware of both the political landscape and how certain votes will impact their ability to stay in the office (Barberá et al, 2019). For example, with regards to ACA, congress members had to evaluate their constituents’ opinions on replacing and appealing ACA law. Since most Americans benefited from the law, the decision of Congress to replace the law has proved futile.

References

Barberá, P., Casas, A., Nagler, J., Egan, P. J., Bonneau, R., Jost, J. T., & Tucker, J. A. (2019). Who leads? Who follows? Measuring issue attention and agenda setting by legislators and the mass public using social media data. American Political Science Review, 113(4), 883-901. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055419000352

Nikpay, S. S., Tebbs, M. G., & Castellanos, E. H. (2018). Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion and gains in health insurance coverage and access among cancer survivors. Cancer, 124(12), 2645-2652. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.31288

A Sample Answer 5 For the Assignment: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Title: NURS 6003 Discussion Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

I completely agree with your statement that when making healthcare policy decisions, legislators must consider the costs and benefits of repealing the Affordable Care Act (McDonough, 2017). As you noted, the ACA has been a contentious issue since its inception, with intense scrutiny focused on its costs and effectiveness. Legislators must carefully weigh these factors, taking into account the views and opinions of their constituents.

President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (ACA) into law in 2010, with the goal of increasing Americans’ access to healthcare coverage. The law expanded Medicaid coverage, created health insurance exchanges, and required people to have health insurance or face a penalty. However, the law has been met with strong opposition, with some claiming that it is too expensive and strenuous for individuals and businesses.
Indeed, healthcare costs are a major issue in the United States, and the ACA has come under intense scrutiny for its effectiveness in addressing these costs. Some studies claim that the ACA has been successful in reducing the number of uninsured people and improving access to care, while others claim that it has failed to reduce overall costs (Blumberg & Holahan, 2016; Davis, 2019).
Given these opposing viewpoints, it is clear that when developing healthcare policy, legislators must carefully consider the ACA’s costs and benefits. This is not an easy task because healthcare policy is complex and multifaceted, and the perspectives of voters and other stakeholders must also be considered. “Healthcare reform is inherently complex and highly political, requiring policymakers to weigh competing values and interests,” writes McDonough (2017). (p. 177).
In conclusion, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) remains a hotly debated issue in American politics, with supporters and detractors arguing over its costs and benefits. When making healthcare policy decisions, legislators must consider a variety of factors, including the impact on the budget, the accessibility of care, and the preferences of their constituents. Making informed decisions about healthcare reform requires a careful cost-benefit analysis.

Reference:

Blumberg, L. J., & Holahan, J. (2016). The Affordable Care Act: What’s next? Health Affairs, 35(1), 1-7. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2015.1220

Davis, K. (2019). The Affordable Care Act at 10 years. New England Journal of Medicine, 380(24), 2289-2291. doi: 10.1056/NEJMp1902551

McDonough, J. E. (2017). The Affordable Care Act after one year: Examining the successes and challenges. Journal of Ambulatory Care Management, 40(3), 177-182. doi: 10.1097/JAC.0000000000000188