The Medicaid policy was created in 1965 as an insurance program aimed to provide health coverage to Americans. Those included were low-income adults, children, pregnant women, elderly adults, and the disabled. The federal state had authority over it, and For instance, not all states expanded Medicaid reform in the structures (Khatana et al., 2020). Virginia is one of the states that expanded Medicaid in 2019, and its expansion has affected the natives in recent days (Garfield et al., 2020). Its impacts have subsequently improved the health system.
Improvements in immunizations have generally helped low-income persons to be treated easily. Moreover, the policy has ensured that high-quality health care is gotten cheaply and easily. It has ensured a decrease in death rates by increasing the number of immunizations and therefore ensuring that disease control is easily managed (Allen & Sommers, 2019). Decreased morbidity; for instance, if people’s diseases are diagnosed and treated early, the risk of complications is lowered (Khatana et al., 2020). Death cases also decrease since people have access to good care and are informed about diseases. For example, pregnant women can be educated on how to deal with issues of family planning by maybe showing them safe abortion methods. Additionally, increase in EHR interoperability; the sharing of electronic health documents between doctors has been enhanced. The method has eased how doctors care for their patients (Allen & Sommers, 2019). It is highly advantageous due to the fact that it does not lead to information blocking. Therefore, the information shared among the experts is properly analyzed; the patient gets the right medication.
Unfortunately, not all states have expanded this policy program due to prevailing limiting factors. States like Texas and North Carolina have arguments about why they do not expand it. One of the main reasons includes detachment of patients from doctor’s decisions. States argue that Medicaid processes are mechanical; therefore, patient choices are limited (Allen & Sommers, 2019). This argument has impacted its establishment by the legislatures thinking it will add no value. The major rationale behind this is pegged on finances where Medicaid money is claimed to be free. Some legislators think that if Medicaid grows, it will reduce their financial budget (Garfield et al., 2020). When funding stops, their budget and normal operations shall be affected. Moreover, there exist political reasons where law makers think that if they support the plan, it may be a form of political loyalism to the states supporting it (Allen & Sommers, 2019). Therefore, as a democratic country, America decides to support an activity due to its optimal benefits to the public. They also believe this shall always give them a chance for debate and compromise.
Additionally, there is a considerable government distrusts in various sectors across the state. This occurs when people fail to believe that the Medicaid components are authentic as outlined to them (Warchol et al., 2019). For instance, some governments think that if they embrace it, they may be charged the money used by their federal governments as a loan. Therefore, due to such thoughts, they refuse its establishment in their states.
In conclusion, Medicaid is important and should be embraced by all states. It will help lower the cost of living; low-income families will access medical care without spending more (Allen & Sommers, 2019). It shall also increase life expectancy through early diagnosis and treatment of disease. Since immunization is increased, Medicaid will help in curbing easily transmittable infections. An increase in the implementation of this program has significant diverse impacts, therefore, should be emulated by all states.
References
Allen, H., & Sommers, B. D. (2019). Medicaid expansion and health: assessing the evidence after five years. Jama, 322(13), 1253-1254.
Garfield, R., Damico, A., & Orgera, K. (2020). The coverage gap: Uninsured poor adults in states that do not expand Medicaid. Peterson KFF-Health System Tracker. DisponĂvel em: Acesso em, 29, 1–11.
Khatana, S. A. M., Bhatla, A., Nathan, A. S., Giri, J., Shen, C., Kazi, D. S., & Groeneveld, P. W. (2019). Association of Medicaid expansion with cardiovascular mortality. JAMA cardiology, 4(7), 671-679.
Warchol, S. J., Monestime, J. P., Mayer, R. W., & Chien, W. W. (2019). Strategies to reduce hospital readmission rates in a non-Medicaid-expansion state. Perspectives in health information management, 16(summer).