List of Pros and Cons of The Affordable Healthcare Act
When it comes to health care. We all want service that is inexpensive as well as honest. Many healthcare reforms in the past have been very detrimental, effecting the nation as a whole, leading to riots due to lack of understanding as to why we can’t have affordable health care with plenty of benefits. The Affordable Health Care Act, better known as Obamacare, which is a reform of Medicaid, is quite different than other healthcare reform that the country has seen in the past.
List of Pros of the Affordable Healthcare Act
1. Lowering the Rising Debt with Medicare
President Bush’s Medicare Part D gave millions of senior citizens the opportunity to receive prescription drugs without having to pay for them upfront. This would lead to generations in the future having to deal with these funds, putting the nation in more debt than it already was.
2. Expanding Coverage
When the Affordable Healthcare Act came to pass, things were quite different. Instead of putting the debt in the hands of the future generations to come, the AHCA required individuals to actually spend money from their own pockets, even if it involved buying coverage, whereas with Medicaid Part D, would have never happened.
3. Prescription Coverage Granted to Many
Once Obamacare came into effect, every individual as well as small group market plan had to include prescription drug coverage. Before Obamacare came into effect, about 1/5 of individual market plans were short of this coverage.
4. Receive Healthcare Regardless of Health Status
Regardless of health status, applicants are required by insurance companies to receive a health care plan.
5. Employers Must Supply Coverage
Every company with at least 50 full-time equivalent employees are required to provide those full-time workers with health benefits that they qualify for by year 2016.
6. Elimination of Drug Plan Coverage Gap
When Obamacare came into effect, Medicare was improved. One specific improvement to Medicare was the elimination of the drug plan coverage gap. More preventative services were also offered for less money by Obamacare.
List of Cons of the Affordable Healthcare Act
1. Hidden Costs to Consumers
The benefactions fail to provide customers with the hidden costs of healthcare. This negative aspect leads to further risks, such as higher spending and debt enlargement.
2. Penalty’s for Non Participants
Those who do not enroll in any type of health insurance will have to pay a penalty in the year 2014. This is somewhat forceful in a way because those who won’t be able to afford healthcare will still be penalized if they don’t enroll, making them feel as though they have to.
3. Medicare Funding Cut
In order to fund the planning and organization of Obamacare, hundreds of billions of dollars were cut from Medicare, meaning not only did this affect the Medicare system, but it also affected those who were a part of it.
4. Narrow Networks of Insurers
Due to the implementation of the Affordable Health Care Act, there was an increase in the use of more narrow networks by insurers all across the nation. This lead to patients having to pay more money out of pocket if they were to seek treatment out of their network.