When making decisions, and thinking like an economist, one must consider costs and benefits. The change in healthcare is said by many to create a tailspin in the economy and overall do more harm than good. If the reports are accurate, which only time will tell, the disabled population is going to suffer just as much, if not more than the general population.
The Affordable Care Act healthcare reform is going to affect income, job security, medical care and government spending on benefits programs. According to my numerical data sources, one in five Americans has a disability, and disability benefits programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security used 43% ($1.5 trillion) of the government budget in 2012 (CBPP & USCB). Medicare also only counts for about 2% of the U.S GDP (Nesvisky). Nearly half of the annual government expenditure is on benefits for 20% of the population, bringing up the question of how the ACA will change funding for these benefits programs.
Reports out of the White House show a “desire to slow healthcare cost growth.” Meaning that funding for Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security now needs to come from other sources ergo the new costs on employers to provide healthcare to employees. Small businesses will get tax deductions and other incentives for providing employee healthcare (Whitehouse.org), however the companies still earn less money than if they didn’t provide healthcare. Larger companies aren’t offered the same incentives making it even harder to earn the same profits they earned in the past. If companies don’t make profit, then layoffs are imminent.
Basic economics show that if taxes and fees increase, then income and consumption decrease, therefore slowing economic investment & growth. One of the biggest reports today is how job opportunities are going to decrease once the employer mandate kicks in, requiring companies to provide healthcare to their employees (Cutler). Employers are now likely to hire fewer workers overall making it especially harder for the disabled workers to distinguish themselves and find jobs.
Unfortunately, donors and supporters of many media outlets influence a majority of what is published. Though the Heritage Foundation and Forbes are two of these outlets, it doesn’t mean they are wrong. One of their articles states that the healthcare change will “increase the deficit by an average $75 billion per year, and as a result, the nation’s publicly held debt will be $753 billion higher at the end of 2020,” according to models representative of Congressional Budget Office data (Campbell). At the intro of the new law, Obama promised savings of $2,500 per family of four, when actually Medicare actuaries predict an increase of $7,450 from 2014 through 2022(Conover). How can some families pay this if they lost their jobs, are making less profit in their company, or are just getting by financially and are unaffected job-wise by the change?
There is a lack in research as to how the ACA will affect the disabled population. To fully understand the overall affects of the ACA, individual groups should be analyzed. Personally, I agree with the reports showing the negatives of the ACA, however; the arguments indicating the positives definitely have some traction. I think the costs do outweigh the benefits, but like I said earlier, we need to wait to see the effects.
Works Cited:
Campbell, Karen, Guinevere Nell, and Paul L. Winfree. "Obamacare: Impact on the Economy." The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation, 22 Sept. 2010. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
Cbpp.org / Policy Basics: Where Do Our Federal Tax Dollars Go? Rep. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 12 Apr. 2013. Web. 2 Nov. 2013.
Conover, Chris. "Obamacare Will Increase Health Spending By $7,450 For A Typical Family of Four [Updated]." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 23 Sept. 2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
Cutler, David M. "The Economics of the Affordable Care Act." Economix The Economics of the Affordable Care Act Comments. New York Times, 7 Aug. 2013. Web. 21 Nov. 2013.
Nesvisky, Matt. "Medicare and Its Impact." Medicare and Its Impact. National Bureau of Economic Research, n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
"The Economic Case for Health Care Reform." The White House. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2013
"The Economic Effects of Health Care Reform on Small Businesses and Their Employees." The White House. The White House, n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2013.
"Profile America Facts for Features." Facts for Features: 20th Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act: July 26. United States Census Bureau, 26 May 2010. Web. 22 Nov. 2013.
The Affordable Care Act healthcare reform is going to affect income, job security, medical care and government spending on benefits programs. According to my numerical data sources, one in five Americans has a disability, and disability benefits programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security used 43% ($1.5 trillion) of the government budget in 2012 (CBPP & USCB). Medicare also only counts for about 2% of the U.S GDP (Nesvisky). Nearly half of the annual government expenditure is on benefits for 20% of the population, bringing up the question of how the ACA will change funding for these benefits programs.
Reports out of the White House show a “desire to slow healthcare cost growth.” Meaning that funding for Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security now needs to come from other sources ergo the new costs on employers to provide healthcare to employees. Small businesses will get tax deductions and other incentives for providing employee healthcare (Whitehouse.org), however the companies still earn less money than if they didn’t provide healthcare. Larger companies aren’t offered the same incentives making it even harder to earn the same profits they earned in the past. If companies don’t make profit, then layoffs are imminent.
Basic economics show that if taxes and fees increase, then income and consumption decrease, therefore slowing economic investment & growth. One of the biggest reports today is how job opportunities are going to decrease once the employer mandate kicks in, requiring companies to provide healthcare to their employees (Cutler). Employers are now likely to hire fewer workers overall making it especially harder for the disabled workers to distinguish themselves and find jobs.
Unfortunately, donors and supporters of many media outlets influence a majority of what is published. Though the Heritage Foundation and Forbes are two of these outlets, it doesn’t mean they are wrong. One of their articles states that the healthcare change will “increase the deficit by an average $75 billion per year, and as a result, the nation’s publicly held debt will be $753 billion higher at the end of 2020,” according to models representative of Congressional Budget Office data (Campbell). At the intro of the new law, Obama promised savings of $2,500 per family of four, when actually Medicare actuaries predict an increase of $7,450 from 2014 through 2022(Conover). How can some families pay this if they lost their jobs, are making less profit in their company, or are just getting by financially and are unaffected job-wise by the change?
There is a lack in research as to how the ACA will affect the disabled population. To fully understand the overall affects of the ACA, individual groups should be analyzed. Personally, I agree with the reports showing the negatives of the ACA, however; the arguments indicating the positives definitely have some traction. I think the costs do outweigh the benefits, but like I said earlier, we need to wait to see the effects.
Works Cited:
Campbell, Karen, Guinevere Nell, and Paul L. Winfree. "Obamacare: Impact on the Economy." The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation, 22 Sept. 2010. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
Cbpp.org / Policy Basics: Where Do Our Federal Tax Dollars Go? Rep. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 12 Apr. 2013. Web. 2 Nov. 2013.
Conover, Chris. "Obamacare Will Increase Health Spending By $7,450 For A Typical Family of Four [Updated]." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 23 Sept. 2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
Cutler, David M. "The Economics of the Affordable Care Act." Economix The Economics of the Affordable Care Act Comments. New York Times, 7 Aug. 2013. Web. 21 Nov. 2013.
Nesvisky, Matt. "Medicare and Its Impact." Medicare and Its Impact. National Bureau of Economic Research, n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2013.
"The Economic Case for Health Care Reform." The White House. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2013
"The Economic Effects of Health Care Reform on Small Businesses and Their Employees." The White House. The White House, n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2013.
"Profile America Facts for Features." Facts for Features: 20th Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act: July 26. United States Census Bureau, 26 May 2010. Web. 22 Nov. 2013.
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