NUR 550 Topic 7 DQ 2 Select An Effective Current Health Policy That Focuses On Or Affects Population Health
NUR 550 Topic 7 DQ 2 Select An Effective Current Health Policy That Focuses On Or Affects Population Health
Select an effective current health policy that focuses on or affects population health. What components of this policy make it effective? Conduct research on its history and the factors that influenced its development.
The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015 is a current health policy that focuses on population health by improving the quality of care and health outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries. This policy achieves its objective by moving away from fee-for-service payment models to value-based care, which incentivizes healthcare providers to prioritize preventive care, care coordination, and patient engagement (Cragle, 2022). Moreover, MACRA provides financial incentives to providers who participate in alternative payment models (APMs) or meet specific quality standards through the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). The policy also aims to reduce administrative burden and enhance the interoperability of health information technology, which can help providers deliver more efficient and coordinated care. MACRA was influenced by several factors, including the unsustainable growth of healthcare costs, the need to improve the quality of care, and the shift towards value-based care. Besides, the policy builds on previous efforts to reform the Medicare payment system, such as the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula, which was replaced by MACRA. MACRA was also influenced by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which introduced several provisions to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare delivery. In addition, it has had a significant impact on healthcare delivery and population health. The policy has encouraged providers to focus on preventive care and care coordination, which can improve health outcomes and reduce healthcare costs. Lastly, MACRA has also facilitated the transition towards value-based care, which aligns incentives intending to improve health outcomes rather than just providing more services.
Reference:
Cragle, S. P. (2022). New Payment Models: The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015, Merit-based Incentive Payment System, Advanced Alternative Payment Models, Bundling, Value-Based Care, Quadruple Aim, and Big Data: What Do They Mean for Otolaryngology? Otolaryngologic Clinics of North America, 55(1), 115–124.
One of the health policies that has impacted population health is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). HIPPA was established in 1996, and it assisted in instituting a collaborative method for healthcare delivery systems to communicate patient data across healthcare systems in a confidential manner (DeNisco, 2016).
HIPPA was instrumental in streamlining a process to address the previously fragmented technology foundation in America’s healthcare systems (Epstein, 2022). HIPPA created a unified method to communicate and manage patient care, which ultimately improved patient outcomes (Epstein, 2022).
HIPPA impacts all patients by standardizing the way pertinent healthcare information is shared amongst healthcare providers while ensuring that their health information is protected and kept confidential. Thus, patient privacy and confidentiality refer to a patient’s right to have their health information protected (DeNisco, 2016).
HIPPA guidelines also impact patients, patient families, and healthcare staff members when photographs or videos are taken and when recordings are conducted. Additionally, HIPPA impacts the way that health consents are managed from comatose patients to criminals in the custody of law enforcement (Miles and Quinlan, 2023).
Thus, although HIPPA is mostly known for its principles on security and privacy of patient healthcare sharing, it also helped to establish a system to ensure that individuals could continue to receive healthcare after losing their job until they are able to find another job. This ensures that individuals are able to continue to have access to healthcare (DeNisco, 2016).
References
DeNisco, S. M. (2016). Advanced practice nursing: Essential knowledge for the profession (3rd ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Epstein, W. N. (2022). Health Equity Mandate. Journal of Law & the Biosciences, 9(1), 1-53. https://10.1093/jlb/lsab030
Miles, G., & Quinlan, A. (2023). HIPAA and video recordings in the clinical setting. Nursing, 53(1), 15-19. https://10.1097/01.NURSE.0000902940.51519.50
