Question #1: In 2019, the number of uninsured individuals was almost 29 million. What factors do you believe have caused this number to fluctuate in the 11 years since the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was enacted, and what problems have resulted from the high number of uninsured individuals? Support your Post with at least two (2) credible SCHOLARLY sources that are no more than 5 years old.

Question #2: What problems have you observed in the current healthcare system?, AND what solutions do you believe might solve these problems? Support your Post with at least two (2) credible SCHOLARLY sources that are no more than 5 years old.

Question #3: Postulate on to what extent do health status indicators measure the health of a population, including what they do not explain about a nation's health. Support your Post with at least two (2) credible SCHOLARLY sources that are no more than 5 years old.

 

Question #1: In 2019, the number of uninsured individuals was almost 29 million. What factors do you believe have caused this number to fluctuate in the 11 years since the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was enacted, and what problems have resulted from the high number of uninsured individuals? Support your Post with at least two (2) credible SCHOLARLY sources that are no more than 5 years old.

 According to Orgera, Tolbert and Damico of the Kaiser Family Foundation (2020), even though the implementation of the Affordable Care Act is aimed to bridge the gaps of the dilemmas in the healthcare system, the uninsured rate of elderly Americans after the year it was implemented drastically increased. The rate of uninsured Americans, elderly or not, is increasing year by year. Orgera and Tolbert cited the high cost of insurance coverage as the root cause of people being uninsured (Orgera, Tolbert, & Damico, 2020). This is actually true to families with low income as the cost of coverage is slightly high for them. Additionally, the 2019 National Health Survey cited 7 reasons for people being uninsured. The participants generally answered that the cost of coverage is not affordable, some are not eligible for coverage, some do not want or need, some find signing up to be confusing, cannot find a plan that meets their needs and 2.8% of the respondents cited that they lost a job (National Center for Health Statistics, 2020). Uninsured individuals are more likely to delay receiving medical care and treatment and worse health outcomes. If people have poor health, it more likely affects their ability to work, hence affects their earnings (Hadley, n.d.).

Question #2: What problems have you observed in the current healthcare system? AND what solutions do you believe might solve these problems? Support your Post with at least two (2) credible SCHOLARLY sources that are no more than 5 years old.

With the recent global pandemic, it seems that the current healthcare system is mainly faced with healthcare workers shortage. Moreover, the number of uninsured adults is still increasing in recent years and the cost of care is drastically high. As said by the National Center for Health Statistics, the cost of coverage of insurance has been the root cause why there are still many adults who are uninsured (National Center for Health Statistics, 2020). On the other hand, Medifind cited that the cost of US Healthcare is high because of various factors such as the new technology and high cost of drug prescriptions. Lastly, we are now faced with a shortage of medical workers due to the increasing rate of patients who seek medical attention especially in the time of pandemic (Medifind, n.d.). I think in order for these healthcare issues to be addressed, the government shall implement interventions such as improving inefficiencies, promoting effective transparencies, and improving quality of care. These can be done if the majority and the leaders formulate a plan of action towards mitigating the issues in the healthcare system.

Question #3: Postulate on to what extent do health status indicators measure the health of a population, including what they do not explain about a nation's health. Support your Post with at least two (2) credible SCHOLARLY sources that are no more than 5 years old.

According to Tulchinsky and Varavikova, health information systems utilize demography, epidemiology, basic, and social medical sciences as health status indicators. Health status indicators monitor the health of a population through health determinants and measures of individuals in the community. These measures are cited as age, gender, genetics, location, economic status, social security, culture and religion, education, lifestyle, occupation, environment, nutrition, health services insurance, and family or social support (Tulchinsky & Varavikova, 2017). The availability of the aforementioned information is of vast importance in scrutinizing and evaluation of the population’s health (Paho, n.d.). Upon the research of health status indicators, confidentiality of personal information of participants or research subjects are observed and maintained. They disclose no other information other than the population’s state of health for formulation of interventions to address public health dilemmas. Other than that, other information is kept confidential for privacy (Tulchinsky & Varavikova, 2017).