...Affordable Care Act and Part D Kelly Ayers HCS/531 Monday 2 July 2012 Dr. Russell Arenz As the population ages, people want the security of knowing that they have health care coverage. At age 65, people have the opportunity to be covered by Medicare. Medicare has four parts to it; part A which is the hospital insurance, part B which is the medical insurance, part C is Medicare Advantage plan which offers extra coverage such as vision, hearing, dental and/or wellness programs, and part D is prescription drug coverage. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act survived a vote of the Supreme Court justices and changes will be implemented within the next few years. As people age and the number of people entering the golden years is growing, these people will be needing and using more health care than past generations. This paper will focus on the changes that will occur to close the gap in Medicare’s prescription drug “donut hole.” The “Donut Hole” of the prescription drug plan is the amount where the senior had to pay the price for the prescription until it reached the high end and Medicare took over again. The gap for prescriptions was reached at $2830 and after the cost of $6440 did Medicare coverage kick back in. “Once the total drug costs (what the plan paid and what the enrollee paid) reached $2830, enrouees went into the donut hole, where they paid the total cost of their drugs. This no-coverage feature continued until total drug costs reached $6440”...
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...Benefits of the New Health Care Law Changes to the health care system affect everyone, Today you can take advantage of five major benefits of the new health care law, and several other important provisions will go into effect by 2015.To help you better understand the Affordable Care Act, which became law in 2010, by the federal government this essay explains what's changing and when and also describes the details of the five most essential benefits that you can take advantage of today they are: 1. Coverage for Children with Pre-Existing Conditions Previously: Health plans could limit or deny health coverage to children with pre-existing conditions, such as asthma or diabetes. Now: The new healthcare law requires health plans to offer coverage to children regardless of whether their health issue was discovered or treated before getting the policy. "For the moment this only applies to children, but by the year 2014 you will not be able to discriminate against anybody who buys coverage based on a pre-existing condition. 2. Elimination of Annual Limits on Benefits Previously: Health plans could establish a limit on annual or lifetime benefits, which meant that many people with chronic health problems could end up with limited or no benefits. Now: Health plans can no longer put limits on the amount of care someone needs. 3. Young Adults Can Remain In Their Parents Health Plan Previously: Health plans could exclude young adults from their parent's health insurance when the...
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...How would repealing the Affordable Care Act affect you and the locals near you? The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act also known as Obamacare, was signed into law by former president Barrack Obama in March 23rd 2010. The health reform offers millions of Americans numerous benefits, rights and protections that ultimately are set to improve the access, quality and cost containment of the American health care system. When we discuss the advantages of Obamacare we often look at how it affects the individual enrolled, but we are less likely to analyze how does Obamacare affect the neighborhood locals such as drugstores and pharmacies. With the election of the new president of United States Donald Trump in 2017, the Affordable...
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...Health care reform in Arizona has contributed tremendously to the welfare of individuals in the state. The act was primarily introduced to ensure that health care became affordable to all. This reform targeted the cost of health care by decreasing the cost of health care service across all divides. The introduction of this act was an important passage considering it afforded individuals that ability to access health care services, which may have not been able to access before due to their inability to afford insurance. It also put into consideration the health of the aged individuals in the state. The reform was originally aimed at offering support to individuals who retired early. Arizona was estimated to have a more amplified population of elders compared to other states. Statistics showed that 13% of the population was above 65 years and about 16% of the population’s age ranged about 54-64 years (Weiland, 2008). Therefore, a quick action had to be taken since many insurance companies barely extend their services to these individuals. Implementation of this reform also reinforced insurance companies to reinstate specific services that they may have done away with before. Furthermore, specific changes within the act offered protection to new consumers. Certain guidelines were given to insurance companies, which included banning insurance companies from withdrawing or denying coverage when the insured is seemingly unwell (Gray, 2013). Arizona’s health care reform...
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...growth in health care spending and increasing the value of care have largely focused on insurance-based solutions. Consumer-driven health care represents the most recent example of this approach. However, much of the growth in health care spending over the past twenty years is linked to modifiable population risk factors such as obesity and stress. Rising disease prevalence and new medical treatments account for nearly two-thirds of the rise in spending. To be effective, reforms should focus on health promotion, public health interventions, and the cost-effective use of medical care. Disease prevention/health promotion approaches are key to slowing the rise in health care spending (Thorpe, Kenneth 2014). Over the past five years the cost of health insurance has risen 54 percent. This persistent rise has recently been attributed to the low out-of-pocket costs paid by consumers. Being oblivious to not knowing the full costs associated with health care, consumers demand more and “overuse” it (moral hazard). The growth in spending has also been linked to the rising use of prescription drugs and new medical innovations and treatments. Many others believe the rise can be traced to the lack of competition in the health care marketplace and have proposed new approaches for health plans to compete on price and outcomes. Economists thinking about rising health care spending note that there are only two approaches for slowing its growth: reduce spending on high-cost medical care that produces...
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...Key Features of the Affordable Care Act By Year On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act. The law puts in place comprehensive health insurance reforms that will roll out over four years and beyond. Use the links below to learn about what’s changing and when: OVERVIEW OF THE HEALTH CARE LAW 2010: A new Patient's Bill of Rights goes into effect, protecting consumers from the worst abuses of the insurance industry. Cost-free preventive services begin for many Americans. See More 2010 Changes. 2011: People with Medicare can get key preventive services for free, and also receive a 50% discount on brand-name drugs in the Medicare “donut hole.” See More 2011 Changes. 2012: Accountable Care Organizations and other programs help doctors and health care providers work together to deliver better care. See More 2012 Changes. 2013: Open enrollment in the Health Insurance Marketplace begins on October 1st. See More 2013 Changes. 2014: All Americans will have access to affordable health insurance options. The Marketplace allows individuals and small businesses to compare health plans on a level playing field. Middle and low-income families will get tax credits that cover a significant portion of the cost of coverage. And the Medicaid program will be expanded to cover more low-income Americans. All together, these reforms mean that millions of people who were previously uninsured will gain coverage, thanks to the Affordable Care Act. See More 2014 Changes. ...
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...assisting in examining And/or treating the patient; performing routine laboratory tests and EKGs; Applying dressings; instructing the patient in preparation for x-rays and laboratory examinations; preparing and administering medications as directed by a physician. The clerical, or administrative, responsibilities that a medical assistant may be expected to perform include scheduling and receiving patients; transcribing and maintaining medical records; procedural and diagnostic coding; typing and taking dictation; arranging for hospital admissions and laboratory procedures for patients; and handling telephone calls, correspondence, reports, insurance matters, office accounts, fees, and collections. Swanson, B. (2005) Careers in Health Care. New York: McGraw-Hill. Whether it’s in the front of the office or behind the scenes, the medical assistant are more than likely the first and last faces you will see during your visit. They work in doctor’s offices or larger medical organization such as hospitals. Medical assistants must enjoy working with...
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...affected the number of people able to receive medical care. Individuals are suffering more than ever because of the inability to receive medical attention when it’s needed. First, the rising cost of healthcare is going to continue to rise year after year. This is making it harder and harder on working class to receive medical care. It is even harder on the unemployed. As President Obama is urging congress for a stimulus this year, many feel that medicine is the best stimulus. America needs a healthy economy. After all, healthcare isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. Today the healthcare deduction is getting bigger and bigger. Despite a huge amount of complaints about “over insurance”, the amount people pay for healthcare out of pocket has risen tremendously. The Commonwealth Fund recently completed two massive surveys showing that the proportion of adults younger than 65 with health insurance who spent more than 10 percent of their income on health care out of pocket (5 percent for low-income adults) skyrocketed fro 13.8 million in 2003 to 21.8 million in 2007. (Jacob S. Hacker, Co-Director of the Center for Health, Economic and Family Security at UC Berkeley). This is in response to the hike in deductibles and co-payments in health plans. There are 40 percent of the working-age populations in an immediate economic bind because of medical costs. Second, because of the rising cost of healthcare, 2009 will be a critical year for health care. Sen. Charles Grassley (r-Iowa) says “healthcare...
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...Indian Health Services System Overview of Indian Health Service The Indian Health Service (IHS), a federal health system, cares for 2 million of the country's 5.2 million American Indian and Alaska Native people. This system has increasingly focused on innovative uses of health information technology and telemedicine, as well as comprehensive, locally tailored prevention and disease management programs, to promote health equity in a population facing multiple health disparities. Important recent achievements include a reduction in the life-expectancy gap between American Indian and Alaska Native people and whites (from eight years to five years) and improved measures of diabetes control (including 20 percent and 10 percent reductions in the levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and hemoglobin A1C, respectively). However, disparities persist between American Indian and Alaska Native people and the overall US population. Continued innovation and increased funding are required to further improve health and achieve equity (Trujillo, 2002). In the 2010 census, 5.2 million people identified themselves as American Indian or Alaska Native, representing 1.7 percent of the US population. American Indian and Alaska Native people experience poor health outcomes and have an average life expectancy that is more than five years shorter than that of the overall US population. The causes of this disparity span the life spectrum, beginning with high infant mortality rates, and include...
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...Women and Diabetes: An Examination of Quality of Care for Medicare Recipients Abstract In recent years, diabetes has become one of the top 10 causes of death among women. Research has revealed that women 65 years and older account for 40% of the population and numbers are expected to increase exponentially. Vigorous medication management and coordination of care is instrumental in treating diabetes effectively. The patchwork of health insurance that exist today, particularly Medicare Part D, is culpable in allowing unequivocal disparities among race, gender, and socioeconomic status. This paper will examine quality of care among Medicare beneficiaries, particularly women, and implications for revision in social policy. Maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle is a necessity for achieving longevity. A nutritional, well balanced diet coupled with regular exercise is a simple, yet effective way to sustain healthy living. Neglecting to address diet and exercise, as part of a weekly regimen, is a precursor to the onset of an acute, lifelong illness. Diabetes is one of the largest and fastest growing causes of chronic disease mortality, morbidity, and disability in the United States (Robbins & Webb, 2006). Currently, there is no vaccine to prevent diabetes and no cure for the disease once acquired. According to the American Diabetes Association, more than twenty-three million Americans have diabetes. Patients age 65 years or older account...
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...Community and Public Health Nursing Reflection Cynthia Clayton NUR/405 January 14, 2012 Sandra Winters Community and Public Health Nursing Reflection Community and public health nursing provide health education, care management and primary care to individuals and families who are members of vulnerable populations and high risk groups. Public health nurse integrate community involvement and knowledge about the entire population with personal clinical understandings of the health and illness experiences of individuals and families within the population. Community and public nurse focus on the prevention of illness, injury or disability, the promotion of health and maintenance of the health of the populations, they work with communities, target health promotion and disease prevention, they act as teachers, counselors and plays an important role in preventing wide spread illness and disease. Community and public health nurses’ goal is to promote, preserve, and maintain the health of populations through the delivery of personal health services to individuals, families, and groups, and also the prevention of disease and disability, to promote and protect the community as a whole. According to Stanhope & Lancaster (2012), nursing has numerous roles including identifying vulnerable individuals and families through outreach and case findings, encouraging vulnerable groups to obtain health services, developing programs that respond to their needs and teaching vulnerable individuals...
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...Ashlee Harvey Kaplan University Final College Composition The topic I am writing about is Obama Care. I chose this topic because while we see it frequently in the news, not many take the time to research it independently more in depth. Topics like abortion, marijuana, and sexual orientation have been exhausted beyond means. Obama care effect more people on a wider scale, where not everyone is affected by a person’s choice of sexual orientation. Obama care affects us as a country as well as individually. I am against Obama Care based on the little print that not everyone takes the time to read. For instance the lax regulations as to who can receive the care, our taxes increasing, and the penalties for exercising our first amendment rights are all things people neglect to think about when the advertising executives wrap everything into a pretty little package. The Obama Care also known as Apple Care is based on financial capabilities. The more your income is the more you can afford for medical care and you are charged accordingly. The government has completely neglected our first amendment right, the right to our freedom of choice. If we chose not to obtain medical insurance starting January two-thousand fourteen, a fine will be applied to those who file taxes. According to PBS News Hour, the penalty this year is the greater of either $95 or up to 1 percent of the portion...
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...In an attempt to create a solution to health care, President Barrack Obama came up with a universal healthcare program called the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Obamacare was signed into law on March, 2010. It has been the most significant repair to the United States healthcare since Medicare and Medicaid passed in 1965. Affordable Care Act has its benefits and concerns such as the cost of Health Care, universal health coverage to everyone regardless of circumstance and budget cuts for Health Care providers The Cost of Health Care As the new healthcare law takes effect insurance premiums are expected to rise. On average for the last six years insurances premiums have gone up six percent per year. The average annual cost that employers pay to cover their employees is around $10,000 for each employee. Usually employees are responsible for 20 percent that total or $2000. At this time the new law has done nothing to reduce the cost employers pay for coverage, so the average individual should expect their cost to rise by $140 in 2013. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the new law will cost the government $938 billion over ten years and is estimated to reduce the federal deficit by $138 billion in that same time frame (NY Times, 2012). Seniors so far have seemed to benefit most for the new law, as each one has received a check for $250 to cover the so called “donut hole” in their coverage, which is the difference...
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...Ornelas Nefitete Phelps HCS/235 September 9, 2015 Health Care Utilization Option 1 {Place Title Here} Health care reform in America is a fiery matter and the source of law meant to make health care obtainable to American people. Another goal of this legislation is to cut down the growth in health care spending. In the past presidential elections have been the stage used to promote health care reform. Over the last few years health care reform has taken great strides under President Barack Obama. This essay will discuss the many different ways recent health care reform measures have expanded or inhibited access to health care to Americans. It will also discuss how changes to access could possibly lead to influences in utilization, Concepts of what universal health care might be, and how current care reflects or contrasts with this. In addition to the thing listed above, this essay will recount a rather personal experience with health care expansion either negative or positive health care reform. The (PPACA) Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or Affordable Care Act (ACA) for short was created and signed into law in March 23, 2010. This law is to make sure that all Americans have access to health care at an affordable rate and to help take hold of the ever rising health care cost. Disputed from the beginning, this reform measure created multiple opportunities for individual American’s to access insurance for preventative care, immunizations, and even those with pre-existing...
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...Rural Health Care By: Lurhonda Maxwell, Amanda Hacko, Laura Bottom, Patricia Delaughter, Tamara Boyd and Ta Rhonda Thomas HCS/440 Professor: Chuck Sigmund Due: September 12, 2011 Individuals and families of rural populations are confronted and struggling with the same challenges and care issues as everyone else in the nation-such as large numbers of uninsured and underinsured, high rising health care costs, and overextended health care infrastructure. Jon Bailey states that, “there are numerous unique health care issues facing rural people and rural places. Despite an array of health care differentials between urban and rural people, there is evidence that the ultimate health status of rural people has much to do with health insurance coverage and the type of health insurance coverage”. Evidence show people in rural areas with health insurance provided by there employers get more or less costly health care provided services then those who have purchased health insurance privately. Insurance that was purchased at lower cost resulted in health care services that were presumably regular and better. As discussed, people in rural areas lack coverage. People in rural areas are being denied coverage and have higher premiums because of their existing...
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