The ACA and Racial and Ethnic Disparities - Free Essay Example

In the United States of America, there is a wide gap between whites and minority groups when it comes to accessibility to healthcare and insurance coverage. The article discusses how some minorities, specifically blacks and Hispanics, had higher chances of encountering obstacles relating to healthcare prior to the implementation of the ACA. Its aim is to assess how the ACAs expansion of coverage has affected inequalities in healthcare for adults. Data was collected and analyzed from the American Community Survey which is a yearly survey performed by the U.S. Census Bureau with information on demographics, social, economic and housing attributes; and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System which is the top system within the U.S. for collecting health related data using telephone surveys. After the ACA, the rates of uninsured blacks and Hispanics decreased however the question still remained if health disparities between whites and ethnic and racial minorities dropped. This article addresses this question in addition to access to insurance coverage and care; and compares this amongst states which chose and did not choose to expand Medicaid Coverage. There were 27 states together with the District of Columbia, which in 2014 to 2015 expanded their Medicaid program and 23 states which did not. Three key measurements were used: adults of working age (19 64) who were uninsured, adults 18 years and older who within the past year who did without care due to its price, and adults 18 years and older who did not have a source of care. The findings were that healthcare access improved for all parties involved in this study when using the above three measurements and appear to contribute to the decrease in the disparities gap between white and minorities even with higher rates of uninsured blacks and Hispanics. The rate of uninsured adults declined overall and although blacks and Hispanics are more affected by the costs associated in their ability to obtain healthcare, the number of individuals going without care also decreased across the board. The number of adults who did not have a healthcare provider also shrunk but the number is still high especially with the Hispanic population. For states which opted for Medicaid expansion, access to healthcare and insurance coverage for adults was better, and racial and ethnic disparities for the measurement indicators were less although there were improvements in all states. Improvements in states which did not do the Medicaid expansion were due to the availability of subsi dies for premiums and insurance marketplace brought about by the ACA. There are still a total of 19 states which have not chosen the Medicaid expansion some of which have large minority populations. Based on the findings of this study, election of the ACAs Medicaid Expansion option can be very beneficial in helping to reduce the racial and ethnic disparities that exist and aid in the improvement of access to care for all. Reference: Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Access to Care: Has the Affordable Care Act Made a Difference? Issue Brief (Commonw Fund). 2017 Aug;2017:1-14.