Affordable Healthcare Reform in America - Essay Example

Affordable health is seen as one of the American laws that ever cared the most for the American people. For instance, US citizens and all other legal residents are required to have health coverage. This is not only helpful in ensuring that all these people have access to medical facilities, but also makes it easier for people to apply. Moreover, the law requires those people who fail to adhere to the set-out guideline to face a severe tax penalty of not less than 695 dollars per year. The bill, therefore, mandates everyone mandate to ensure their health is assured (Bishop, Murphy, & Health, 2013, pp. 60-67). In the third chapter of his book, he mentions that all citizens need to secure their health to avoid expensive medication due to the failure of preventive medication (Bishop, Murphy, & Health, 2013, pp. 57-60). The Americans, therefore, have got the mandate to make an informed decision about their health.

First and foremost this bill is protective. Before the health reforms, many American companies used to exploit their customer and deny others chances to secure their health. The company would do this by charging very high premiums and hence exclude the poor and even some middle-class citizens from accessing insurance coverage. The fact that information is now available online makes it easier for consumers to choose better insurance coverage that works for them. However, in the past insurance companies also would seek minor errors in the customer's application forms and use that as a basis of denying them compensation whether a need arose.

Consumer assistance program. The law on reforms also aimed at ensuring that there were some offices set up to purposely assist the US citizens in making informed decisions concerning the various covers available. Such programs could also assist the consumer in filing appeals and complying with the insurance companies. Consumer assistance programs also assist educate citizens or their rights and responsibilities.

Health relations have helped reduce and prevent diseases and illnesses. For instance, a budget of $ 15 billion is set apart every financial year to help in funding the programs aimed at the reduction of diseases. This bill has also given US citizens the right to choose their doctors their doctor as no one can choose their preferred doctors from one’s plans network. People also have the freedom of choosing hospitals outside their health plan network. Over many years since the attainment of American independence, many Americans had lost lives due to poverty and inability to afford medical services. Moreover, others died for the carelessness of medical officers as Gruber puts it in his book (Gruber, 2011, pp. 45-50).

In the last four years, the American health system has not only exhibited high degrees of efficiency but the consumer's welfare has also been a priority than ever before. All these can be attributed to the health reforms Act.