Affordable Care Act, Essay Example

Affordable Care Act may put those at disadvantages who take good care of their health and currently qualify for lower rates. Thus, Affordable Care Act does reduce the incentive to maintain healthy lifestyles for some by eliminating financial reward. Affordable Care Act could also be seen as a form of progressive tax on businesses and high-income individuals. While Affordable Care Act is not perfect and it may lead to fewer choices in health plans for individuals, it may lower the insurance industry costs in the long-term through standardization. It is possible that the government may then force the insurance industry to further lower insurance costs for an average American.

Affordable Care Act seems to be an attempt at making healthcare a basic right of everyone in America, just like education though it does exclude undocumented residents. It is also a noble attempt to prevent discrimination against those with pre-existing conditions because certain health conditions mean disastrous financial consequences for many low-income Americans. One can also expect for average healthcare costs to come down because now government would be able to bargain with drug manufacturers and insurance agencies on behalf of Americans. But the healthcare costs could go up to because the Affordable Care Act is quite generous towards the elderly. This is unnecessary because elderly population already benefits from Medicare and Medicaid and there is no need to put additional burden on the rest of the population.

But like any other regulation, there may be some abuses. For e.g. the law does exclude those with very little income and it is possible that more self-employed people will severely understate their income. In addition, many small businesses may intentionally hire 25 or fewer people to qualify for generous federal tax credits for businesses with 25 or fewer employees.