New York City’s Health Care Reform Policy
Abstract
New York City’s government utilizes several policies to improve the welfare of its citizens. The city executes the Health Care Reform Policy to ensure its conformity to the Health Care Reform Act of the US. In New York, the Affordable Care Act Prevention and Population Health law provides a basis for the integration of public health into medical care.
The city focuses on transforming its health agenda into an efficient health sector. It incorporates a new vision for dealing with chronic illnesses, reducing health disparities, and improving the health population by working in collaboration with individuals, communities, and concerned groups. It also works closely with insurance companies that offer medical cover.
Health care policy
The health care policy, for instance, the Federal Health Care Reform conforms to the current insurance policy that aims at achieving health for all. The Federal Health Care Reform is meant to help people access medical insurance and enhance consumer protection. The Federal Health Care Reform requires many New Yorkers, including other Americans to procure health insurance.
This aspect encourages people to seek health care that may be preventive, primary, curative, or rehabilitative. Federal Health Care Reform integrates expanded medical aid for all. This initiative helps New Yorkers, especially low-income earners, to access medical aid. The policy directs all employers to provide medical insurance to their workers (Peters, 2012, p.83).
The Federal Health Care Policy includes the regulations assigned to private health insurers. The policy provides for tax credits to low-income earners to enable them to purchase health insurance. The New York government advocates for the improvement in the cost sharing of medical care. Health analysts recommend the adoption of preventative healthcare in New York.
The health care policy includes tax changes that help the New York government to generate revenue for the financing of new programs. The Federal Health Care Reform also involves the provision of incentives to New Yorkers to enable the provision of cost-effective health care services (Peters, 2012, p.49). The health care policy integrates mechanisms that ensure accountability in health care organizations and quality improvement programs.
The health regulation contains structures that help in the reduction of costs in medical care programs. It also provides a voluntary health insurance program that procures medical cover for the New York community. The New York health policy makes it mandatory for the youth to obtain medical insurance in certified medical care providers. The federal government of New York usually imposes fines on individuals who fail to comply with the health policy.
The Federal Health Care Reform Policy is secondary legislation. It can only be exercised within the context of New York and is not a mainstream constitutional amendment. It became law in 2010(Peters, 2012, p.135).
The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act form the Federal Health Care Reform. The Federal Health Care Reform Policy is a radical measure intended to inculcate improved medical care for all New Yorkers.
The Federal Health Care Reform Policy may be eclectic. The policy was formulated due to the need for the New York government to fulfill moral and cultural obligations to its people. Every government ought to care for the wellbeing of its citizens. Healthy citizens tend to be productive. The policy was also created after research studies showed that New York citizens did not access medical care easily due to the inexistence of appropriate health regulations.
The city of New York experienced inefficiency in its health structures. This aspect led to poor quality health services and high medical costs. The Federal Health Care Reform Policy introduced health insurance for all in New York City. The Affordable Health Care Act (ACA) provides affordable and accessible health care. The New York government adopted the ACA due to the dissatisfaction of many Americans with the health laws of the country.
In 2006, about four out of ten Americans, which translated to 38 percent of the American population expressed confidence in the nations medical system (Peters, 2012, p.102). The major concern of New Yorkers involves high prices in health care and medicines.
Health care costs are usually a result of large profits made by drug manufacturing and insurance companies. The Federal Health Care Reform Policy was thus mainly formed to improve health care accessibility and affordability for all.
Many Americans supported the Federal Health Care Reform Policy when the government formed it. Elected officials oversaw the implementation of the policy. Forums on public health focused on how to execute the policy. The Federal Health Reform Policy allows the New York state to offer greater protection than what the US law provides concerning health issues. Various states of the US worked collaboratively to ensure full implementation of the policy.
Policy evaluation
The Federal Health Reform Policy is effective because many people in New York benefit from it. The law allows individuals below the age of 26 years to be enshrined in their parent’s insurance cover (Peters, 2012, p.45). The New York health department utilizes a web portal through which individuals access the information on health insurance (Peters, 2012, p.13). The policy has also effectively implemented cost sharing on preventative care.
This aspect reduces health care costs. The law also outlaws discrimination of individuals based on their social economic classes. The law cautions insurance companies against fixing limits on the amount one can spend on health care. The US Department of health is responsible for defining these restrictions.
The health policy is cost-effective. In the past, New Yorkers relied on curative health services. The health regulation has initiated the utilization of preventative medical care services which have decreased medical expenses. The policy also advocates for the adoption of medical insurance which also places limits on medical expenditure.
The cost of implementing this policy is high due to public awareness efforts, stakeholder training, capacity building of elected officials and cost-sharing initiatives of the government. The federal government operates in partnership with insurance companies making it easy to execute the health policy in New York City.
The Federal Health Care Reform is beneficial to its users in a number of ways. Many people in New York City can afford health insurance coverage. Insurers must offer medical guarantees to their clients. This aspect means that people who apply for the cover are entitled to it regardless of their age, occupation, and gender. The policy also allows direct access to obstetric and gynecologists services for people.
New York law currently allows its people to easily access the services. The policy can be improved in various ways. The department of health should set up standards and targets which aim at improving health standards in New York City.
These aspects integrate the interventions made from medical funds, insurance policies and other units that can upgrade health care like the education sector. The executive branch should also undertake a review of all public health funds to assess where additional funds are likely to be used.
A number of barriers may derail the implementation efforts of the health policy. Chronic illnesses account for about 75 percent of the government’s spending on medical care (Christensen & Overdorf, 2011). Chronic illnesses present complex indices on the spending of the government. Poor coordination from different provider settings also acts as a barrier to the improvement of the health situation in New York City.
References
Christensen, C., & Overdorf, M.(2011). Meeting the challenge of disruptive change. Harvard Business, 78(2), 67-76.
Peters, G. (2012). Approaching the study of Public Administration. In H. Christopher (Ed.), American Public Policy: Promise and Performance (pp.4-47). Washington, DC: CQ Press.
Peters, G. (2012). Federalism and Intergovernmental Relations. In H. Christopher (Ed.), American Public Policy: Promise and Performance (pp.99-142). Washington, DC: CQ Press.
Peters, G. (2012). Public Administration, Democracy, and Bureaucratic Power. In H. Christopher (Ed.), American Public Policy: Promise and Performance (pp.48-97). Washington, DC: CQ Press.