The Affordable Care Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama in March 2010. Many of the provisions of the law directly affect health care providers. Review the following topic materials:
1. \”About the Affordable Care Act\”
2. \”Health Care Transformation: The Affordable Care Act and More\”
What are the most important elements of the Affordable Care Act in relation to community and public health? What is the role of the nurse in implementing this law?

References not older than 5 years. Thank you.

Topic 4 DQ 2

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) increased access to healthcare for so many Americans. The Affordable Care Act Essay Paper The most important components of the ACA regarding the public and community health include the element that increases universal to healthcare through increased coverage; consolidating accessibility to the primary health-care and preventive health care; and increasing investment in the public health by increasing the community and clinical preventative care (Courtemanche et al., 2015).

The ACA increased access to primary healthcare for the medically underserved populations has significantly impacted both community health and public health. A high number of people are medically underserved in the US due to the increased health risks as well as the scarcity of primary healthcare providers. As a result, to lessen the shortage of primary healthcare providers, the Affordable Care Act facilitated investment to increase community healthcare clinics as well as the National Health Service Corps (Seo et al., 2019). Moreover, provisions of the ACA encourage implementation of care models like school-based health centers, community-based health clinics, maternal and child home visitation, medical homes, and Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). The models of care have significantly increased access to healthcare to the community members (Seo et al., 2019). Additionally, the care models are avenues for promoting health and preventative care within the community settings and thus support primary care, community, and public health (Courtemanche et al., 2015). Through the Affordable Care Act, billions of dollars have been invested in the health centers and the National Health Service Corps; this has significantly increased the number of patients served and health center, patients.  The Affordable Care Act Essay Paper

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Apart from increasing access to primary healthcare for underserved communities and increasing coverage for preventative health, the ACA directs invests in public health (Seo et al., 2019). For example, clinical preventative services have increased coverage under the ACA. The ACA has also led to the formation of the Prevention and Public Health Trust Fund that funds the community investments to improve public health. Moreover, the Act also funds programs such as tobacco cessation programs for expectant women, oral health-care prevention activities, and personalized prevention planning for individuals under Medicare (Courtemanche et al., 2015). The Affordable Care Act also authorizes the funding of training and education for primary healthcare practitioners.

The nurse has the role of facilitating effective implementation of health policies and increasing access to health care. Nurses can thus support the health of communities and families by providing the necessary information to communities regarding access to the health insurance covered under the ACA (Sonenberg et al., 2015). Nurses also have the role of promoting health and preventing disease in communities and populations, and also through the provision of direct care (Sonenberg et al., 2015).

The nurses also have the role of facilitating increased access to primary care. Nurse practitioners can provide much-needed primary care, which is characteristically offered by physicians. Therefore, nurses can advance their education to become nurse practitioners and increase their scope of practice (Sonenberg et al., 2015). This plays a big role in addressing the shortage of primary care, which is a key element of the Affordable Care Act.

References

Courtemanche, C., Marton, J., Ukert, B., Yelowitz, A., & Zapata, D. (2018). Effects of the Affordable Care Act on Health Care Access and Self-Assessed Health After 3 Years. Inquiry: a journal of medical care organization, provision, and financing, 55, 46958018796361. https://doi.org/10.1177/0046958018796361.

Seo, V., Baggett, T. P., Thorndike, A. N., Hull, P., Hsu, J., Newhouse, J. P., & Fung, V. (2019). Access to care among Medicaid and uninsured patients in community health centers after the Affordable Care Act. BMC health services research, 19(1), 291.

Sonenberg, A., Knepper, H., & Pulcini, J. (2015). Implementing the ACA: The influence of nurse practitioner regulatory policies on the workforce, access to care, and primary care health outcomes. Poverty & Public Policy, 7(4), 336-356.      The Affordable Care Act Essay Paper

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