The Role of the RN/APRN in Policy Evaluation – Affordable Care Act

I chose the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as the healthcare policy to be evaluated. ACA, popularly known as Obamacare, was a government program that was established in the United States. ACA evaluation is a critical examination of its impact on health equity in the United States. By expanding insurance coverage to millions of previously uninsured Americans, the ACA hoped to increase access to healthcare and minimize inequities in health outcomes (Dolan & Dolan, 2023). The importance of socioeconomic determinants on this issue, however, cannot be overlooked. Socioeconomic status, education, employment, and access to social services are all examples of social determinants that have a substantial impact on health outcomes (Faan & Faan, 2022). The efficiency of the ACA in addressing these variables is a critical component of its evaluation.

The ACA’s impact is heavily influenced by social determinants of health. While the Affordable Care Act increased insurance coverage, it did not address the underlying socioeconomic gaps that affect health (Simes & Jahn, 2022). Individuals with low means, for example, may still encounter challenges to getting effective healthcare due to transportation issues, restricted access to primary care doctors, or lack of healthcare education. These social variables can stymie the ACA’s goals, especially for vulnerable groups. An assessment of the ACA should include how well the policy addresses the socioeconomic variables, as well as whether it has successfully reduced gaps in healthcare access and health outcomes across demographic groups (Edmiston & Alzubi, 2022).

It is critical to analyze how the ACA has addressed social determinants through programs such as Medicaid expansion, the introduction of health insurance exchanges, and attempts to increase primary care access in the review. Its influence on racial and ethnic differences, income inequities, and geographic variances in healthcare access and health outcomes should be examined as well. By examining the ACA’s performance in mitigating the effects of social determinants, policymakers and healthcare professionals can learn whether the program has truly improved health equity in the United States or if additional efforts are required to address the root causes of health disparities.

References

Dolan, D. D., & Dolan, B. (2023). Jacalyn Duffin, COVID-19: A history. Social History of Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/shm/hkad057

Edmiston, K., & Alzubi, J. (2022). Trends in telehealth and its implications for health disparities. https://www.mitchellwilliamslaw.com/webfiles/Trends%20in%20Telehealth.pdf

Faan, F. G. E., MS, RN, & Faan, M. L. P., RN, (Eds.). (2022). A population health approach to health disparities for nurses: Care of vulnerable populations (1st ed.). Springer Publishing Company