Why is affordable healthcare important?

Asked by: Dr. Dillon Schmeler  |  Last update: February 11, 2022
Score: 4.2/5 (43 votes)

By making health coverage more affordable and accessible and thus increasing the number of Americans with coverage, by funding community-based public health and prevention programs, and by supporting research and tracking on key health measures, the ACA is beginning to reduce disparities in health insurance coverage, ...

Why is good healthcare important?

High-quality health care helps prevent diseases and improve quality of life. ... Helping health care providers communicate more effectively can help improve health and well-being. Strategies to make sure health care providers are aware of treatment guidelines and recommended services are also key to improving health.

What does affordable health care mean?

A job-based health plan covering only the employee that costs 9.61% or less of the employee's household income. If a job-based plan is “affordable,” and meets the “minimum value” standard, you're not eligible for a premium tax credit if you buy a Marketplace insurance plan instead.

How does ACA improve quality?

4 Ways the Affordable Care Act Is Improving the Quality of Health Care in America
  1. You are healthier after a hospital stay. ...
  2. You get more time with your doctor when you need it. ...
  3. You're paying less. ...
  4. Your taxpayer dollars are going toward better investments.

Was the Affordable Care Act successful?

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law in March of 2010 and despite repeated attacks, not only has it survived – it has thrived, and continues to provide tens of millions of Americans with access to health care coverage.

Here's Why the Affordable Care Act Is So Controversial | History

24 related questions found

Why is healthcare important to an individual?

Importance of Health

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well being. For a healthy life cycle, a person needs to have a balanced diet and has to regularly exercise. ... Our social environment is an important factor in our individual health.

Why is healthcare important to the community?

A healthy community benefits every person in it. And community health is one means of achieving a healthy community. The field of public health aims to protect and improve health by addressing the structures and systems that define a place—and by supporting the people who live and work there in making healthy choices.

Why is public health so important?

Importance of Public Health

Public health creates programs to prevent diseases rather than curing them as prevention can be far more effective and less expensive than the cure. Public health helps prolong the lives of people with the help of preventive measures which keep the body healthy and fit to live longer.

How does lack of health care impact a community?

The uninsured live sicker and die younger than those with insurance. They forego preventive care and seek health care at more advanced stages of disease. Society then bears these costs through lower productivity, increased rates of communicable diseases, and higher insurance premiums.

Is health care necessary?

Individual Mandate

Most people in California are required to have health coverage. If you do not have health coverage you may have to pay a tax penalty. This is called the “individual mandate.”

Why health benefits are important to employees?

When employees are better able to afford comprehensive healthcare with the help of their employee health benefits, you will have a healthier and more focused workforce with less absenteeism. Therefore, offering employee health benefits can help to bring about an overall boost in productivity.

Why are benefits plans important?

Providing benefits to employees is seen as managing high-risk coverage at low costs and easing the company's financial burden. Employee benefits have been shown to improve productivity because employees are more effective when they have a measure of security for themselves and their families.

Why is lack of healthcare a problem?

Lack of health insurance coverage may negatively affect health. Uninsured adults are less likely to receive preventive services for chronic conditions such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. ... However, health insurance alone cannot remove every barrier to care.

What happens without healthcare?

Without health insurance coverage, a serious accident or a health issue that results in emergency care and/or an expensive treatment plan can result in poor credit or even bankruptcy.

How can we make healthcare more accessible and affordable?

5 ways to improve access to health care
  1. Ensure adequate funding of the Children's Health Insurance Program and retain Medicaid expansion and implement expansion in more states. ...
  2. Stabilize individual insurance marketplaces and retain ACA market reforms. ...
  3. Address physician shortages.

How does public health impact your daily life?

Public health protects and improves communities by preventing epidemics and the spread of disease; promoting healthy lifestyles for children and families; protecting against hazards in homes, work, communities and the environment; ensuring high-quality health-care services; safeguarding and improving the quality of the ...

Why is the CDC important?

As the nation's health protection agency, CDC saves lives and protects people from health threats. To accomplish our mission, CDC conducts critical science and provides health information that protects our nation against expensive and dangerous health threats, and responds when these arise.

How does the Affordable Care Act affect access to healthcare?

The ACA has helped millions of Americans gain insurance coverage, saved thousands of lives, and strengthened the health care system. The law has been life-changing for people who were previously uninsured, have lower incomes, or have preexisting conditions, among other groups.

What are the effects of the Affordable Care Act?

The ACA enabled people to gain coverage by 1) expanding the publicly funded Medicaid program to cover adults with annual incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level; 2) establishing the Health Insurance Marketplace for individuals and small businesses, allowing them to purchase private health insurance (PHI); and 3 ...

How does Affordable Care Act affect healthcare providers?

The ACA also reduced updates in Medicare payment levels to hospitals, SNFs, hospice, home health, and other providers, for an initial projected savings of $196 billion. All these policies cut payments to payers and providers with little or no evidence of harm to patients.

How did the Affordable Care Act ACA benefit individuals?

The ACA was designed to reduce the cost of health insurance coverage for people who qualify for it. The law includes premium tax credits and cost-sharing reductions to help lower expenses for lower-income individuals and families.