Affordable Care Act - Term Paper Example

Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act was passed by congress in March of The act is intended to lower health care costs for Americans aswell as improve the overall quality of health care. It is also intended to make health insurance companies more accountable for their prices and policies (Grossman, Sterkx, Blount, & Volberding, 2010). Proponents of this act believe that the government needs to have greater control over the health care industry because health care costs are unaffordable for many Americans.

The government’s health care website, healthcare.gov, says that the Affordable Care Act will “give Americans new rights and benefits, including helping more children get health care coverage, ending lifetime and most annual limits on healthcare, [and] allowing young adults under 26 to stay on their parent’s health insurance.” Also, while many benefits of the law have already taken place, such as tax-credits for businesses who provide insurance for their employees, many of the provisions will be implemented between now and 2014 (“About,” 2010).

Despite the intended benefits outlined by the proponents of the law, there has been much opposition and negative reaction by the public as well as leading conservative talk shows. Those who oppose the law say that it is unconstitutional because it forces Americans to get health coverage by fining them if they don’t have it (“Are the New,” 2010). It is also viewed by opponents as another step in the direction of Socialism. Opponents also say that the benefits of the law are greatly exaggerated and that implementing the law will ultimately cost citizens more money in taxes than they will receive in reduced health care costs.

Additionally, they believe that as a result of making health care a right, “government bureaucrats will be making health, life, and death decisions that should be up to the patient and doctor to decide” (“Should all Americans,” 2011). References Grossman, G., Sterkx, C., Blount, E., & Volberding, E. (2010, June 9). Compilation of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Retrieved from http://docs.house.gov/energycommerce/ppacacon.pdf Healthcare.gov (2010). About the Law. Retrieved from http://www.

healthcare.gov/law/about/index.html Prnewswire.com (2010, September 2). Are the New Health Care Laws Good for America? Retrieved from http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/are-the-new-health-care-reform-laws-good-for-america-pros-and-cons-from-150-experts-in-new-resource-from-proconorg-102065973.html ProCon.org. (2011, February 14). Should all Americans Have the Right to Health Care? Retrieved from http://healthcare.procon.org/ Health Information Technology for the Veterans in Combat Health Information Technology manages patient health information across multiple computerized systems from various hospitals and doctors offices.

The Health I.T. system for veterans is known as VistA. This system has been implemented for veterans in combat since as early as the 1970s. Recently, veterans have been given the capability of downloading their medical histories from the va.gov web site in order to share them with health care providers (“V.A. Patients,” 2011). The main goal of Health Information Technology for veterans in combat is to improve the overall quality of health care for patients. Proponents of this technology say that it has many benefits for patients and doctors.

They say that, as a result of the patient’s records being integrated, doctors are able to make better decisions because they possess a more detailed history of patients (“The Health,” 2007). Also, they believe that the integrated system can reduce medical errors. Furthermore, supporters of Health I.T. for veterans believe that the system saves time and money by decreasing paperwork and other administrative costs (Spring, 2008). Additionally, they feel that the benefit of implementing the VistA system with other computerized patient records outweighs the initial cost.

Opponents of Health Information Technology for veterans claim that the system invades the personal privacy of patients by allowing others to access their medical histories. They also claim that the technology is not as efficient as proponents say it is because some computerized systems are not compatible with other systems, therefore trying to integrate them is a waste. Another problem that they see is that the integration of a variety of systems into one system will leave the records more prone to attack from hackers and other outside threats.

Lastly, opponents site the fact that upgrading their software to integrate their systems has is extremely expensive and is not worth the initial investment (“Electronic Medical,” 2009). References Cbo.gov (2007). The Health Care System for Veterans: An Interim Report. Retrieved from http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/88xx/doc8892/MainText.3.1.shtml Healthworldnet.com (2009, March 1). Electronic Medical Records: The Pros and Cons. Retrieved from http://healthworldnet.com/HeadsOrTails/electronic-medical-records-the pros-and-cons/?

C=6238 Spring, M., & Ghosh, A. (2008, September 16). EMR Advantages and Disadvantages. Retrieved from http://www.brighthub.com/health/technology/articles/7402.aspx Va.gov (2011, March 1). V.A. Patients: Learn More about Upgrading Your my HealtheVet Account. Retrieved from http://www.myhealth.va.gov/