The Importance of the Affordable Care Act

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As American transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “money often costs too much”. This famous quote can be interpreted in many different ways; it seems very logical in parallel to the idea that money can result in a high social and moral cost. As individualistic as American society is, the preference for monetary stability has become a higher priority for Americans than general societal health and stability. It is then not a surprise that the Affordable Care Act (ACA, also known as ObamaCare) has become one of the most controversial health care reforms as it looks to improve the health care system for the country whilst conflicting with cost reform at the same time. Essentially, the ACA is a program that works to entirely reform the government’s health insurance by raising taxes in order to improve quality and affordability. This taxation is done in order to provide everyone, those from different socioeconomic backgrounds, with a good and competent health care plan. The purpose of this essay is to show the importance of the ACA, as general health is more important than monetary cost. Formerly, the ACA has been controversial in many presidential elections and so no one has ever been entirely successful in materializing the idea of universal health care until the Obama administration in 2010. This fight, for health care reform, can be traced back to1935 when president Franklin Roosevelt unsuccessfully pushed for the implementation of universal health care in congress, followed by more unsuccessful attempts by Harry Truman, John Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, and Bill Clinton. “The most important and fundamental difficulty facing healthcare reformers in America is that our system of government has multiple veto points: the separ... ... middle of paper ... ...29 Million People Could Be Denied Affordable Coverage Without Health Reform. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 May 2014. Lawrence O. Gostin, et al. "Improving The Population's Health: The Affordable Care Act And The Importance Of Integration." Journal Of Law, Medicine & Ethics 39.3 (2011): 317-327. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Sept. 2013. “ObamaCare Facts: dispelling the myths.” ObamaCare: pros and cons of ObamaCare. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 May 2014. "Office of Population Affairs (OPA)." Affordable Care Act. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2014. Saldin, Robert. "Wonder Drug Or Bad Medicine? A Short History Of Healthcare Reform And A Prognosis For Its Future." Juniata Voices 11.(2011): 83-91. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 May 2014. "Six Ways the Affordable Care Act Is Helping Cancer Patients." Six Ways the Affordable Care Act Is Helping Cancer Patients. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 May 2014.

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