U.S. Healthcare Delivery What Is Your Evaluation

¶ … U.S. Healthcare Delivery

What is your evaluation of the effectiveness of the U.S. health care system in the context of delivery, finance, management, and/or sustainability? What are the issues that prompted a need for health care reform?

healthcare system is effective at delivering state of the art services and cutting edge solutions for patients. This helps to make it one of the best in providing various services and treatment options. The result is that more people will come and utilize the American healthcare system because of these benefits. This is why institutions such as the Mayo and Cleveland Clinics are so popular. They are known for delivering the best treatment options in the world to patients. (Anderson, 2011) (Shi, 2009)

However, the financing and management are two major issues which impact the needs of different stakeholders. In the case of financing, many people cannot afford to pay the high premiums associated with health insurance and will often forgo coverage. Management is a major issue which can affect quality and the availability of services. In this situation, most people will be charged a higher rate if they are not under a government program (such as: Medicare or Medicaid). This is problematic, as these services are unevenly priced for specific programs and are much higher for individual consumers / businesses.

Sustainability has been brought into questions with large segments of Americans not having access to various programs. While those who can afford the costs, will be provided with some of the best treatment option available in modern medicine. The result is that a group of have and have-nots are emerging in the last several years. The current economic situation is speeding up the scope of these changes. (Anderson, 2011) (Shi, 2009)

The biggest issues that prompted reforms were financing, management and sustainability. The combination of these factors forced government officials to create new programs to address these disparities and prevent abusive practices (i.e. The Affordable Care Act). At the same time, they wanted to have greater oversight and mitigate the sharp increases in costs. (Davidson, 2010)

The Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama in March 2010. Many of the provisions of the law directly affect health care providers. What are the most important elements of the Affordable Care Act in relation to community and public health? What is the role of the nurse in implementing this law?

The most important elements of the Affordable Care Act include: free preventive medicine, discounts on prescription drugs for seniors, small business tax credits, to monitor / preclude healthcare fraud, the establishment of the insurance marketplace, consumer assistance and coverage for individuals with preexisting conditions. The combination of these factors is designed to mitigate abusive practices. Moreover, there is an emphasis in dealing with key problems early and providing a number of services to encourage everyone to live healthy lifestyles. These elements will have an impact on community and public health by providing alternatives for receiving treatment through increased competition. ("Key Features of the Affordable Care Act," 2014) (Tate, 2012)