CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

Contemporary Issues in Health Wellbeing and Social Care

Contemporary Issues in Health Wellbeing and Social Care

Introduction

The contemporary issue which is discussed in the following assignment is the higher medical coverage costs for the elderly citizens of the country. The elderly population in different regions is growing. Individuals of age 65+ will increase by 23% between 2012 and 2022. Moreover, medically frail individuals with age-related diseases, physical, and cognitive decline are at higher risk of mortality. This rising population and risk factors reflects a dramatic demand for access to long-term health care.

As the Baby Boomers turn 65, the elderly population growth is predominantly in the western regions of the United States. This significant increase reflects a dramatic shift in the age structure. More specifically, Interim Population Projections forecast that Americans, those age 65+ will double over the next two decades from 4.3 million in 2010 to 8.4 million in 2030. This will take place as the Baby Boomer generation born from 1946 to 1964 reaches age 65.

Presently the United States health insurance coverage is fragmented with various public and private insurances as well as wide-ranging gaps in coverage rates across the nation. However, it is forecasted that with the implementation of the federal health reform legislation the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the number of uninsured individuals will decline by 34 million by 2020. The Obama administration's vow of a health care overhaul was put into motion on March 2010 The nationwide healthcare reform aims to diminish sharply the number of individuals without coverage an objective that past democratic presidents ineffectively pursued for 75 years. The individual mandate requires Americans to maintain health insurance coverage (Neno, 2004, 14).

Those individuals not covered through their employer or government program are to purchase insurance form a private source by 2014. Non-compliance with the mandate will result in a penalty paid to the Internal Revenue Service and will be assessed and collected in the same manner as a tax penalty.

Furthermore, federal resources, and policy changes will extend health insurance coverage to 32 million Americans starting in 2014. Hence, different states will have the opportunity to collaborate with stakeholders and pave the way toward accessible care for the elderly. As the elderly population in the states continues to grow and more elderly choose community-based services an alternative to institutionalization, (Miller, 2011) the demands for accessible geriatric care such as Community-Based Adult Services (CBAS) a long-term community-based program has gained momentum and merits an investigation.

Problem Statement

The problem is that for approximately 2.1 million low-income elderly people with disabilities the only resource is the health coverage Medicaid provides and is the difference between living in the community and institutionalization. Medicaid is the United States largest publicly funded health insurance with enrollment rate that exceeded 55 million in 2011.

Moreover, as a result of weakened economy different states of the country faces overwhelming budget shortfalls that jeopardize the current performance of different aid programs, hence compromising a particular state's ability to improve access to care for ...