Affects of Healthcare Reform

The Patient Protection Act and Affordable Care Act of 2010 changed the face of healthcare delivery in the U.S. It unleashed a huge wave of newly insured individuals who had never been able to obtain health insurance before into the system. The expansion of the Medicaid program has also increased the number of patients accessing services. With a system that was already strained, we are heading to a massive system overload. (Health Capital Topics, vol. 4, issue 2, February 2011) Doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals want to help people in need, but the sheer logistics of expanded care delivery, the growing shortage of personnel, and reduced reimbursements for services has had a negative effect on the ability to provide quality care to patients.

In Urban healthcare areas, competition among providers and facilities is rampant. Providing healthcare is a labor intensive and costly industry. Although there may be an adequate population to provide a variety of services, many of the patients now accessing these services are covered under insurance programs such as Medicaid that provide minimum reimbursement for services provided. (Impact of attending physician workload on patient care: JAMA Internal Medicine, vol. 173, no 5, March 22, 2013, pp 375-377.) In response to the increased regulatory burdens, health care stake holders are changing business practices. Ensuring viability in the new marketplace requires strategic planning and a vision of the future. “A reevaluation of market standing, labor costs, and current infrastructure is now essential to ensuring solvency as the ACA continues to be implemented.” (Executive Insight, A Closer Look at Healthcare Reform’s Potential Impact. Halupa, Colleen, June 2011) Health care providers continually try to improve practice and provide the best care possible. Unfortunately the changes within the healthcare reform are preventing growth and increasing the shortage of healthcare providers among communities. Consumers...