Legislation Reform Psychology - Research Paper Example

Department of Health and Human Services, 2011). Although this law was created with the best of intentions, it contains s few loopholes that might make its implementation difficult and thus it may not achieve its stated objective of making healthcare affordable and available. The law also needs to be amended due to the fact that the government has too much control in the provision of healthcare services. One of the positive aspects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is the emphasis it puts on the equal provision of healthcare for all.

For a long time, the kind of healthcare one got and the manner in which one received it depended mostly on how and where he was insured. The issue of insurance has been one of the major obstacles to access to quality healthcare especially for those living below the poverty line (Reid, 2009). Insurers can no longer stop paying for those who are sick regardless of whether they have jobs or not. Those with pre-existing conditions can not be denied coverage based on the status of their health (Trumbull, 2010).

This makes it easier for them to get the medical services they need without having to worry about finances. For small businesses, the act provides tax credits which make it possible for employers to offer affordable coverage to their employees. The Patient Protection and Affordable Act also makes it impossible for insurers to cap coverage, which means that one cannot be denied coverage just because an insurance company has spent a lot of money on him (Christensen and Grossman, 2009). All in all, the act takes away the overrated powers that insurance companies had on healthcare services provision.

One of the biggest problems with this law is that it allows too much government control and involvement in healthcare. Although it is the government that finances a huge percentage of this sector, too much involvement can lead to inefficiency especially due to bureaucratic practices common within government agencies. If the government is allowed to control almost all operations within the healthcare sector, there would be little room for improvement if such a need arose. There is also the issue of increased cost of health insurance (Trumbull, 2010).

This can occur if the cost of providing extra benefits outweighs competitiveness within the insurance company. If there is lack of enough competition, insurance companies are likely to take advantage of increased demands for insurance coverage to raise their rates (Christensen and Grossman, 2009). The individual mandate that comes with this act also poses a huge problem. People are required to buy insurance failure to which they attract a 2% tax increase. Added to this is the controversial issue of increasing tax for people who earn very high incomes so as to finance the healthcare sector (Trumbull, 2010).

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act should be reformed so as to smoothen out the problematic areas which might negate the objectives that the act intends to achieve. For instance, the section requiring all Americans to be insured should be amended so that failure to secure coverage does not lead to a tax increase. The act should also be amended to create room for more involvement of the private sector and less control by the government. Such a reform would introduce a platform for checks and balances so that no one takes advantage of loopholes to create