Running head: PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

Terry W. Hicks

Brown Mackie College

Senior Project

10-8-2013

Abstract

Good health is an important aspect of ones life. It not only increases the chance of living longer, but improves the overall quality of life. Good health allows people to work, enjoy family, and do what makes them happy. When a person is healthy they have more energy, good thinking skills, and function better. People contribute more to society when they are healthy because they’re happier, positive, and socially active. In other words, people’s health should be protected, and with that understood, a law was put in place to improve America’s health care system. What is in this paper is that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is design to help provide quality and affordable health insurance to all individuals, families, and businesses. The law was passed to make it easier to get health insurance, make it more reliable, and more secure. As of October 1^st, 2013 the marketplaces created by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are open to purchase health insurance. With new law in place, it’s everyone’s responsibility to get health insurance coverage; either if it is individual, family, or employer, it is a shared responsibility. And everyone must comply or face a penalty. Marketplaces are open for business and all health insurance plans must meet the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requirements of including an essential health insurance package. Health insurance can be purchased in the marketplaces either is in a private or public. Tax credits are available for small employers that qualify, and taxes and fees for comparative effectiveness research will paid by insurance companies and sponsors of self insured health plans.

“Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”

Introduction

Sixteen days is what it took to come to an agreement! The United States government was shut down from October 1^st to 17^th because the Democrats and Republicans couldn’t come to an agreement on the fiscal spending bill concerning the new law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. How could something like this happen when it affects so many Americans? Over 400,000 Americans were furloughed without pay, while Congress, the White House, and other government official still continued to get paid. This allover a bill that is supposed to help Americans isn’t that what we want. In the lives of American people, health plays a very important role in achieving a stable and productive life. Good health is essential for maintaining a quality standard of living in Americans day-to-day lives. When people are healthy, it not only increases the chance of living longer, but they contribute more to society because they are able to perform at their best and highest ability. Being a healthy individual allows one to pursue their life objectives, and participate in life processes, such as personal hobbies and interests, physical and recreational activities, educational and career goals, and political and economic endeavors because their energy and stamina is at a higher level. Overall, being healthy aids people in developing into confident and independent individual’s through all stages of life. To maintain and improve the health of American people there should be a quality healthcare system in place to provide a foundation for a healthy lifestyle. Having a regulated healthcare system will permit governing and policing officials set specific guidelines and standards that will protect against wrongful activities and malpractice. A regulated system would be directed and aimed towards protecting citizens and supply support for practicing professionals in health care. An act was made into law, which put into place comprehensive reforms that intend to improve the accessibility of affordable health coverage for Americans and protect the consumer from being abused by insurance company practices. This paper will outline the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the complexities involved with the act. The paper will provide an overview of the act, and supply information concerning employer shared responsibility, basic health benefits, the exchanges and health insurance marketplaces. Also, included will be the tax credits involved in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and taxes and fees will be examined.

Overview of the Act:

What is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act? The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is an important health care reform bill, also known as the Affordable Care Act or Obama Care. The bill, on March 23^rd, 2010, was signed into law by President Barack Obama. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is designed to expand the coverage of health care to the estimated 48 million Americans that are uninsured through combining factors of cost controls, subsidies, and mandates in 2013. The bill contains over 500,000 words and is over 2,500 pages long. The new statute of health care contains alterations to health insurance and how the health care industry is operated in the United States. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is to make sure that every American has the ability to receive quality and affordable health care and to make necessary changes in the current health care system to contain and control costs. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act have 9 Parts to the bill, in which each title states important elements to the new law.

What does the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act do? The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act add to the number of Americans that have access to reliable, quality, and affordable health insurance. It extends Medicaid to poor American people, it furnishes employers with tax credits that offer health insurance to their employees, and it provides people with assistance they need to pay for health insurance. Also, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provides a marketplace where Americans can purchase health insurance and get help paying for it.

Why was the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed? The Patient Protection and Affordable Act was passed to improve the overall American health care system. The plan is to get rid of a lot of the imperfections and correct the faults and problems that are throughout the whole system. The Affordable Care Act will change the conditions of the health care system by making them better, and creating more secure and reliable insurance coverage for American people. It will make the coverage of insurance easier to afford for families and small business owners, and lower high healthcare costs that have put so much tension on individuals, families, employers, and the Federal budget. Some of main goals the Affordable Care Act intends to achieve by 2014 include:

• Reduce administrative expenses, make affordable premiums, and raise competition between insurance companies.

• Assist the people that can’t afford insurance by themselves.

• Spread Medicaid coverage out to people with low-income.

• Decrease the gap in prescription coverage.

• Stop insurance companies from dropping people when they’re ill.

• Reduce profits and overhead of insurance companies, by making them use premiums on Medicare.

• Require insurance companies to maintain an operational website.

• Stop insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions, and stop discriminatory premium rates based on health status.

• Keep adults under 26 cover under parent’s health plan. 

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was passed to put American people more in control of their health care by giving them more stable and flexible choices to choose from that will start in October 1^st, 2013 (HHS.gov).

When does the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act go into effect? As of October 1^st, 2013, the new healthcare law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act went into effect, which officially means that American people can start shopping and getting health insurance. Although, the coverage will not begin until January 1^st, 2014, people can begin registering into the program. The first registration period lasts until March 31^st, 2014. Also, effective on October 1^st, 2014, new laws started which says that Americans have to get health insurance or they will be fined (Examiner.com & Bronx.news.com, 2013).

Who is affected by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act? All American citizens are affected by the Patient Protection and Affordable care Act one way or another. The new law states that everyone is required to have a health insurance plan by 2014 or they will face penalty. On the other hand, Americans are able to choose how they want to get their health insurance coverage. They can keep their current plans, no matter if it is a private plan, or through Medicaid, Medicare, or an employer. In all, 95% total of the legal population is affected by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Also, the new law states that group health plans and insurers must make available coverage for dependent children until they reach the age of 26 on their parent’s health insurance plans regardless of tax, student, or dependent status as it relates to financial support under the Patient Protection and Affordable care Act (Amadeo, About.com, 2013).