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Healthcare in America today is a hot topic that no one will be able to ignore any longer. No matter what side of the fence you find yourself on, there are some ways that the new healthcare laws are negatively impacting our nation as a whole. The first of which is that because of the new healthcare laws the cost of healthcare to Americans will increase exponentially. This is in part because of the “guarantee” that insurance companies cannot turn someone away because of a preexisting condition. Well naturally what takes place when sick people who previously could not go to the doctor with insurance now have insurance is that they go to the doctor. So what does that mean for the insurance company? That’s right, increased cost, and not enough income to cover the payouts. The insurance companies can’t just take a hit like hundreds of thousands of people who had a preexisting condition go to the doctor and pay for it with the monthly payments that the American people pay to have insurance. It does not make financial sense for the insurance companies, because when more is going out than is coming in it does not take long for the company to feel it. Well one way that the insurance companies will combat this is by raising deductibles making them so high that it will discourage many to not even use the insurance unless for a catastrophic event, making the insurance policy a catastrophic insurance only. (Hall Jr, 2008) What will that mean for the American people though? Well unfortunately this will increase the overall price of healthcare, and it will increase the deductible they will have to pay out to use the insurance they pay for, which will make the insurance more like a catastrophic insurance instead of a health insurance. The American people are voicing their opinion about the dislike of the Affordable Care Act. “When asked more broadly if they approve or disapprove of the Affordable Care Act, Americans come down on the disapprove side by 54% to 38%” (Newport, 2014) The law in itself was meant to help people, which is all well and good, but it’s like considering taking a medicine for an illness. The medicine is supposed to help elevate the symptoms which is great, but if you look at the side effects and all the potential harm it could cause you it may be better to not take the medicine after all. Next there is the issue with how the Affordable Care Act will impact employment rates. Blanchard states that “according to recent surveys of chief financial officers. These CFOs believe that full implementation of ACA could result in a reduction in employment and a shift toward part-time workers.” (Blanchard, 2014) When big business and small businesses alike now have to offer healthcare plans to their full time employees they incur a large cost that was not previously in the budget. So what do businesses do when faced with having to pay out large sums of money? They look for loopholes, and the blatantly obvious loophole here is to cut the employees to part time because that is an easy “out” that would exclude them from having to offer the insurance. Another problem with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act is that the overall care that any given facility, especially hospitals, can provide will be drastically reduced. You remember the days when the wait in the ER was so long you thought it couldn’t possibly get any worse? Well what happens when millions of Americans who previously did not have insurance now do? They have the mindset that they are paying for it so they might as well use it! So now there are drastically more people visiting the ER than ever before which means the doctors and nursing staff are spread thin and there will be longer wait times. (Fajardo, Diaz, 2013) So many people in America today live pay check to pay check. It’s unfortunate that many people cannot afford to add any excess spending to their current lifestyle, but it is the truth. Now with the Affordable Care Act, which is not really affordable to the average American, everyone is forced to sign up for health insurance. Think back to the part about living pay check to pay check, now imagine having to find room in the budget for the significant price of purchasing healthcare. Say you choose to go against the system and not buy it simply because you can’t afford it, well don’t worry you will have a huge penalty to pay in your taxes at the beginning of the year, so either way you will have to pay a substantial amount of money that you may not have. “A disturbing number of workers are living paycheck to paycheck, a recent survey by payroll processing kingpin ADP indicates “what would you do if your paycheck was delayed?” ADP asked in preparation for National Payroll Week. In response, 40% of Americans said they would cut back on at least one life essential they normally take for granted; 26% Said they would purchase fewer groceries; and 20% doubted they would be able to meet their rent or mortgage obligations”(“Employee Benefit News”, 2000) Like I said before the overall idea behind the Affordable care act was good, but like the medicine theory the side effects far outweigh any positives when looking at America as a whole. Sources: Newport, F. (2014). Americans still say health law more harmful than helpful. . Gallup Poll Briefing, 2. doi: 1930-224X Blanchard, D. (2014). Obamacare could have negative impact on employment. Industry Week/IW, 263(1), 36. doi: 0039-0895 Fajardo, R., & Diaz, B. (2013). Hospitals,doctors hurting from obamacare and sequestration. Caribbean Business, 41(11), 7. doi: 0194-8326 Employee benefit news. (2000, November). Many Living Check to Check, 14(13), 24. Retrieved from http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.lmunet.edu/ehost/detail?vid=54&sid=64e0702b-6f68-4512-861f-d89d0ddad703@sessionmgr4004&hid=4109&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ== Hall Jr, C. P. H. (2008). Deductibles in health insurance: An evaluation. Journal of Risk & Insurance, 33(2), 253-263. doi: 0022-4367
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