Although there is often political pressure to create programs that increase access to services, these programs often are unfunded mandates. The expansion of insurance coverage is directly linked to health care costs, and controlling these costs presents a tremendous challenge. This week’s readings present information on cost evaluation; potential trade-offs related to cost, quality, and access; and financial and economic principles that apply to cost evaluation in delivering health care services.

An example of the difficulty of addressing these competing interests can be seen in a case study concerning "The Impact of the Affordable Care Act on North Carolina’s Uninsured Population". This Assignment focuses on ethical, financial, and quality of care aspects surrounding the issue.

To prepare:

• Read the case study about "The Impact of the Affordable Care Act on North Carolina’s Uninsured Population" on pages 202–203 in Health policy and politics: A nurse's guide (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.).
• Reflect on what you have learned from the readings and media segments about health care financing as you read the case study.

To complete this Assignment, write a 3- to 5-page paper that addresses the following:

• Explain the impact of the Affordable Care act on the population that it affected.
• Explain the impact of the economics of providing care to patients from the organization’s point of view.
• How will patients be affected in relationship to cost of treatment, quality of treatment, and access to treatment?
• What are the ethical implications of this act for both the organization and the patients?

This Assignment is due by Day 7 of Week 5.

References:

• Knickman, J. R., & Kovner, A. R. (Eds.). (2015). Health care delivery in the united states (11th ed.). New York, NY: Springer Publishing.
  • Chapter 7, “Health and Behavior” (pp. 119-144)
    This chapter discusses the role of behavior on health and describes behavioral risk factors and potential community-based interventions.
• Backer, E. L., Geske, J. A., McIlvain, H. E., Dodendorf, D. M., & Minier, W. C. (2005). Improving female preventive health care delivery through practice change: An Every Woman Matters study. Journal of the American Board of Family Practice, 18(5), 401–408. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. 
  This article informs the Assignment as an example of a health program that was not successful. You will conduct additional research on this topic to determine current advocacy programs that have been more effective.
• Hancock, C., & Cooper, K. (2011). A global initiative to tackle chronic disease by changing lifestyles. Primary Health Care, 21(4), 24–26. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. 
  This article details the efforts of the C3 Collaborating for Health charity. In particular, C3 focuses on minimizing the risk factors of poor dieting, smoking, and low physical activity.
• Schwartz, S. M., Ireland, C., Strecher, V., Nakao, D., Wang, C., & Juarez, D. (2010). The economic value of a wellness and disease prevention program. Population Health Management, 13(6), 309–317. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. 
  The authors of this article detail a study that sought to determine the economic consequences of a disease prevention program conducted by the Hawaii Medical Service Association.
• Tengland, P. (2010). Health promotion and disease prevention: Logically different conceptions? Health Care Analysis, 18(4), 323–341. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. 
  This article investigates the differences and causal connections between health promotion and disease prevention.

Walden University M.S. in Nursing

Formative Evaluation Criteria for Applications and Formal Papers