Essay on ACA and Health-Care Outcomes & Costs

ACA and Health-Care Outcomes & Costs Assignment

What components of the ACA do you think will have a positive effect on improving health care outcomes and decreasing costs?

Submission Instructions :

Your initial post should be at least 500 words, formatted and cited in current APA style with support from at least 2 academic sources.

Solution essay – ACA and Health-Care Outcomes & Costs Assignment

Components of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that improve healthcare outcomes and decrease costs include

Preventive care services: The ACA requires coverage for preventive services like screening tests, immunization, and counseling that improve healthcare outcomes. Preventive services are crucial in promoting individual health by helping identify health issues early on, which makes it easier to treat illnesses when a patient’s health has not deteriorated significantly and treatments are most effective. Services like immunization offer protection that prevents certain diseases and health problems. By preventing illnesses and starting treatment early, this component reduces healthcare costs by reducing the number of people who need medical care (Soni et al., 2020). Healthcare is also cheaper because it saves resources that would have been used to treat patients if they developed chronic diseases or serious complications.

Medicaid expansion: This has further expanded insurance coverage for low-income earners to cater to any individual with an income below a certain level by state. It has also widened the reach of insurance coverage for more Americans, helping them access primary and specialty care services. With coverage, patients can access preventive care services and quality healthcare services that enhance their health. The expansion will help to lower the very high costs of emergency care since this is the only option for many of the uninsured low-income earners (Glied et al., 2020). The expansion also assists in reducing expenses by providing early intervention and constant care for chronic illnesses. The newly insured population, therefore, has financial support, as it would have been very expensive for them to pay for health care services on their own.

Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs): Accountable care organizations encourage doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare providers to coordinate care and improve the quality of care. Since the providers are paid for meeting high-quality standards, Medicare beneficiaries can be offered quality services at low charges. ACOs enhance healthcare delivery since patients receive care at the right time, and the providers offer preventive health services and improve the management of chronic diseases. The ACO model also reduces healthcare costs since it eliminates costly and unnecessary tests and treatments, which would increase healthcare costs. It also assists in reducing the expenditure of the Medicare program by payments obtained from hospitals and other providers through shared savings.

Essential health benefits (EHB): They are a set of ten essential services that insurance plans must offer, such as maternity care, mental health services, and substance use treatment. This component makes sure that all the major health problems that are likely to affect a majority of Americans are addressed so that people are able to get adequate health care for issues that would affect their overall health. A larger number of patients gain access to medical treatment, which reduces the risk of developing complications from untreated or poorly managed diseases because they do not have insurance (Myong & Fung, 2020). This will lead to improvements in long-term health and quality of life, contributing to healthier populations. The component also reduces healthcare costs by allowing patients to receive essential services without paying out of pocket.

Increased funding for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) that offer care to rural and underserved populations, serving all individuals regardless of their income level or insurance status. FQHCs provide basic primary care, preventive care, free or low-cost prescriptions, health education, and ongoing management of chronic conditions, improving overall community health outcomes. Increased funding for FQHCs will reduce high costs for emergency department care.

References

Glied, S. A., Collins, S. R., & Lin, S. (2020). Did The ACA Lower Americans’ Financial Barriers To Health Care? A review of evidence to determine whether the Affordable Care Act was effective in lowering cost barriers to health insurance coverage and health care. Health Affairs, 39(3), 379-386.

Myong, C., & Fung, V. (2020). ACA funding increases for federally qualified health centers and changes in health center use for children in Massachusetts. Health Services Research, 55, 29-29.

Soni, A., Wherry, L. R., & Simon, K. I. (2020). How Have ACA Insurance Expansions Affected Health Outcomes? Findings From The Literature: A literature review of the Affordable Care Act’s effects on health outcomes for non-elderly adults. Health Affairs, 39(3), 371-378.