Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay
It is generally accepted that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) by the Obama administration was a revolutionary piece of policy. It seriously attempted for the first time to address social justice in American healthcare. However, the policy was dogged with political undertones from the start, with Republican lawmakers openly being hostile to the legislation. When the Trump administration came to power, repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act became one of…
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Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
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.
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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. Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay.
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.
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 votes 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. Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay
The Politics of Healthcare Policy Formulation: Efforts to Repeal and Replace Obamacare (Affordable Care Act) and the Reluctance by Legislators to Pass the American Health Care Act that Disadvantages Potential Voters
It is generally accepted that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) by the Obama administration was a revolutionary piece of policy. It seriously attempted for the first time to address social justice in American healthcare. However, the policy was dogged with political undertones from the start, with Republican lawmakers openly being hostile to the legislation. When the Trump administration came to power, repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act became one of their number one preoccupations. The Republican efforts soon faced lack of across-the-board support because legislators realised that the new ‘repeal and replace’ proposals were going to hurt the common American voter. Many Republican legislators started seeing the chances of their re-election becoming slim if they continued with their support for the repeal and replacement of the ACA or Obamacare. This paper is about this political angle to the important healthcare legislative policies that have been implemented in America lately. Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay.
Repealing and Replacing the ACA
The first stab at repealing and replacing the ACA was taken in May 2017 when the American Health Care Act (AHCA) was passed in the House of Representatives (Amadeo, 2018). It is the AHCA that the Trump administration and Republican legislators sought to use to repeal and replace Obamacare. However, it soon became apparent that under the AHCA, 24 million Americans were going to lose health insurance coverage (ASA, n.d.). The AHCA proposed a tax credit not based on income but based on age. This alone was going to raise healthcare costs for many Americans. It also brought a Patient and State Stability Fund that would reduce premiums after 2026 by twenty percent. The result of this, however, was going to be higher costs for Americans already having pre-existing medical conditions. Furthermore, the new law replacing the ACA would give states the power to suspend several rules currently in the ACA given certain circumstances. This also was going to result in Americans with chronic diseases paying higher rates of premium for health insurance coverage (Amadeo, 2018).
How Re-election Prospects Affected Efforts to Repeal and Replace the ACA
A cost-benefit analysis by the legislators, Republicans included, soon showed them that they risked not getting re-elected because of the far-reaching negative aspects of ‘repeal and replace’. As observed above, the new policy was going to deprive many Americans of access to affordable healthcare. Yet this is the very thing that Obamacare had addressed Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay. For instance, the American Academy of Family Physicians opposed the proposals in the AHCA as they raised health insecurity among Americans. According to the AAFP, this new policy was increasing costs and denying patients health coverage on account of age, health status, or socio-economic status (AAFP, 2020).
For these re-election reasons, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell found it hard to get votes for the AHCA as it was. None other than the Congress Budget Office (CBO) found fault with the AHCA. In the end, for their own interests the senators came up with their own overhaul proposal called the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 (ASA, n.d.).
How Voters’ Views Affect the Policy Positions of Legislators
Legislators both in the House of Representatives and the Senate are elective leaders that have to campaign to get elected by voters. Because of this very fact, their decisions and positions on policy matters such as the ACA and the AHCA are normally influenced by what voters think. This is of course due to the fact that as politicians, their overriding interest is to get re-elected to office Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay.
References
Amadeo (October 17, 2018). Obamacare repeal and replacement plans: What a Congressional plan to repeal Obamacare would look like. The Balance. Retrieved 10 March 2020 from https://www.thebalance.com/congressional-plans-to-repeal-and-replace-obamacare-4160599
American Academy of Family Physicians [AAFP] (2020). ACA repeal and replace. Retrieved 10 March 2020 from https://www.aafp.org/media-center/kits/aca-repeal-replace.html
American Society of Anesthesiologists [ASA] (n.d.). Affordable Care Act repeal and replacement legislation. Retrieved 10 March 2020 from https://www.asahq.org/-/media/sites/asahq/files/public/advocacy/federal-activities/legislative-activity/2017626-ahca-summary-with-senate-info-final.pdf?la=en&hash=98051C9116F9B4174B4E02FFAD1AE41347D57347 Politics and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act sample essay