Introduction
The health care system is definitely one of the most significant structures for the US. Logically, it has always been quite challenging to manage because for this huge country with such a diverse population, it is tough to come up with a solution that will satisfy everyone. The government puts a tremendous amount of effort to make medical support as available as possible but it faces a lot of obstacles. The Republican Affordable Care Act is one of the controversial programs.
The purpose of the meeting, key participants, key agenda items, and meeting logistics
On May 10, 2019, a Republican politician, Tom MacArthur, was leading a town hall meeting in Willingboro, New Jersey. He was answering questions regarding an amendment that he drafted in the House-passed Republican Affordable Care Act replacement bill. This amendment included points that allowed states to apply for waivers denying health insurance coverage for certain pre-existing conditions. It also lets states not give some health coverage and services. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss health care and, specifically, how the new amendment would affect it. Constituents were able to ask direct questions and MacArthur gave them answers.
Background information and a description of the committee
The Affordable Care Replacement Bill came to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which President Obama enacted in 2010. ACA changed the situation in the US healthcare tremendously as it increased the number of insured citizens, and it also made care easier to access. Levitt et al. emphasize, “as of the end of the third open enrollment under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), 12.7 million people had signed up for coverage in the health insurance marketplaces” (p. 1). More people than ever before we’re able to get subsidies, which could increase their quality of life. However, after Donald Trump won the elections in 2016, the government started changing the direction of the way the health care system operated. According to Heitkamp (2019), all the bills funded by Republicans to replace Obamacare never intend to boost the well-being of US citizens. Thus, The Republican Affordable Care Act replacement bill created a lot of negative reactions to it. Originally, it was created to improve the situation in the insurance market. In reality, the audience claimed that this amendment would leave many people without medical support and would decrease the welfare of US communities.
One specific topic that was discussed at the meeting and an explanation of the committee process
One of the crucial issues raised at this meeting was about the pre-existing insurance coverage, especially for people with life-threatening diagnoses. One of the participants, Geoff Ginter, stood up and presented a situation he is currently in. His wife was diagnosed with cancer when she was 40, and his two children both have pre-existing conditions from birth. Thankfully, Ginter is fortunate enough to have a job that covers tremendous sums of money for treatments. Otherwise, there is no chance he would be able to afford expensive care. If The Affordable Care Replacement Bill is enacted, this man will lose the subsidies and his family will face awful conditions with the risk of lethal outcomes for his wife and daughters. Ginter mentioned as well that the insurance sphere is complicated enough for many and that the existing government has to acquire a deeper understanding of how it actually works. To summarize, this amendment will most likely put a substantial number of individuals in severe financial conditions, which, as a result, raises certain morality issues.
An analysis of the key stakeholder positions related to the topic discussed
MacArthur did not give the direct answer to this question, probably, because Ginter refused to hear the explanations. However, the politician stated the governmental position earlier by saying that in reality this amendment is created to protect people with pre-existing issues rather than to worsen their situation. He said that the program intends to make taxpayers instead of employers sponsor individuals with serious problems. MacArthur argued that the idea behind is to expand access to insurance for other groups of citizens.
Key interactions that occurred at the meeting
Over main interactions, participants discussed a lot of crucial topics. Those included the significance of coverage for pre-existing conditions, as well as the situation for private employers. The last but not least, one of the key topics was also assigning states to decide which health benefits to consider essential. Overall, the way the audience communicated with MacArthur was quite tense. Constitutes raised their voices and often did not let the politician answer questions or confront complaints. People tended to insult him, reacting aggressively, and it seemed like they did not believe MacArthur’s words at all.
Outcomes of the meeting including the specific topic focus
The main outcome of this meeting supports its main idea – the health care system requires some major changes. Republicans are sure about the fact that Obamacare might not be as effective as it seemed. Bauchner (2016) supports these thoughts by saying that there is not enough high-quality data demonstrating tremendous improvements and raises in life quality. Indeed, it is difficult to judge if the program worked or not in such a short period of time. To have a better understanding of the outcomes, years have to pass so the situation will be seen in dynamics. The meeting ended with the remained constituents trying to attract the attention of the politician to the moral issue coming from the implementation of the amendment.
Conclusion
To conclude, it is not an easy task to decide whether applying The Republican Affordable Care Act is a great plan or not. However, it is clear enough that the reaction of the audience cannot be called peaceful. Therefore, it is undoubtedly worth carefully monitoring its implications, collecting all the available data and statistics, and examining the results. The Health system is one of the main indicators of the country’s well-being so no concern can be underrated.
References
- Bauchner, H. (2016). The Affordable Care Act and the Future of US Health Care. Jama,316(5), 492. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.9872
- Heitkamp, K. L. (2019). Universal health care. New York, NY: Greenhaven Publishing, LLC.
- Levitt, L., Claxton, G., Damico, A., & Cox, C. (2016). Assessing ACA Marketplace Enrollment. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation,1-5.