In a Microsoft Word document of 4-5 pages formatted in APA style, you will imagine you are going to make a visit to your representative in Congress. There are two parts to this assignment.
Address the following topics:
Develop a one-page document that supports your position on the AHCA that you would leave with your representative or his or her aide when you make your visit.
This one-pager, also called a “leave behind,†should state your position clearly in bullet points and give your reasons why your position is preferred.
This “leave behind†should have 1 inch margins and utilize 14-point font throughout.
If you were making this visit in person, you would present your “leave behind†to the person with whom you speak during your visit.
Include a second page that describes your rationale for the position in your “leave behind†page supported by at least two journal articles.
Write a two-page brief to describe the scenario surrounding your legislative visit. Understanding the political affiliation of your representative, include answers to the following:
Was your member in support or in opposition to the AHCA?
State three points that you would cover in support or opposition to your representative\'s position.
How does your nursing experience influence the advocacy position that you take on the AHCA?
You may find it necessary to search for answers to the questions outside of the assigned reading.
This assignment has two parts. Label each part separately as Part I and Part II. Be sure to use APA guidelines for writing style, spelling and grammar, and citation of sources. I posted APA Tips and APA Sample Paper in Announcements and in the Discussion Area. Please review instructions and if you have any questions, please call me at 409-988-1868.
Title Page – Use APA Guidelines
Part I
Imagine that you are going to make a visit to your representative in Congress. Develop a one-page document that supports your position on the American Health Care Act (AHCA) also known as TrumpCare that you would leave with your representative or his or her aide when you make your visit. Title your one-pager, “Leave Behind.” The Leave Behind should clearly state your position in bullet points. This “Leave Behind” should have 1-inch margins and utilize 14-point font size throughout the one page. If you were making this visit in person, you would present your “Leave Behind” to the person with whom you speak during your visit. Do Not include an introduction. Bullet points should be short. . .not in long sentences or paragraphs. DO NOT go over one page.
Page 2 is your Rationale for your position in your Leave Behind bullet points. Use Rational as your Level 1 heading. Font size 12 point is required. The rationale is required to be supported by at least two journal articles. In determining your position, I encourage you to review the four (4) plans for The Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) to help you decide if The Affordable Care Act is “affordable,” therefore providing your with reasons as to support or not support the ACHA (Trump Care). If one research article makes a statement, fact check it. Do not just assume the author is being completely truthful. If a liberal is writing the article his/her opinion will be much different than if a conservative is writing an article. Both the AHCA (Trump Care) and the ACA (Obama Care) was misinterpreted by many people based on the “author” of the articles, interviews, etc. Keep in mind that Nancy Pelosi a Democrat from California , and Speaker of the House of Representatives was asked what was in the ACA Bill. Her response: “We have to pass the bill so we can find out what is in it.” There are always hidden things in bills. . . .be careful and diligently research both the AHCA and the ACA and then form your own opinion.
Part II – is a Level 1 heading: Brief Describing the Legislative Visit
Part II will help you understand the political affiliation of your representative. This section also has two (2) parts. Using 12-point font size write a brief with at least 2 well-developed paragraphs describing your legislative visit. Use the heading: Legislative Visit
The second section of Part II will be to thoroughly answer three (3) questions. No heading is necessary for the questions. Just number and write the questions under your brief on your legislative visit.
Number and write each question
- Was your member in support or in opposition to the AHCA?
- State three points that you would cover in support or opposition to your representative’s position.
- How does your nursing experience influence the advocacy position that you take on the AHCA?
References – Do not cite references on your Leave Behind. Cite references in your Rationale.
First Steps on Becoming a Grassroots Lobbyist/Advocate for Health Care Policy
Part I: Leave Behind
Reasons for supporting the American Health Care Act (AHCA): The AHCA;
- Mandates healthy adults to find employment in order to obtain coverage under Medicaid
- Provides subsidies to help individuals from low-income families to afford health insurance
- Allows the government to provide states with funds to support separate high-risk pools to cover persons with pre-existing medical conditions
- Grants states the authority to manage Medicaid
- Eliminates federal tax penalty for persons who fail to enroll in any insurance plan
- Gives both state and federal agencies the power to determine mandatory benefits
- Grants adult children the freedom to be covered under their parents’ insurance plans up to the age of 26
- Offers periods for special enrollment based on life events suffered by individuals
Rationale for Position
High healthcare cost is a major barrier to healthcare access in the United States. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) which was signed into law in 2010 has not adequately addressed the cost issue that is still preventing American populations from accessing quality healthcare services (Courtemanche et al., 2021). Americans are already overburdened by the heavy taxes that they are paying to the government through other purchases that they are making. Imposing a tax penalty on citizens who fail to enroll in an insurance plan just adds to this burden. In this respect, the Senate should consider approving Trump Care or the American Health care Act (AHCA) because it eliminates the federal tax penalty on individuals who fail to obtain insurance coverage (Gusmano et al., 2021). This allows citizens to use the little money that they have to pay for medical bills. Additionally, by allowing state funding to support separate high-risk pools, AHCA will be able to provide coverage for citizens with pre-existing medical conditions.
The AHCA improves Medicaid coverage thereby increasing healthcare access for populations. According to Hill and Abdus (2021), Medicaid enrollment is associated with an increase in healthcare access and utilization of preventive services. The AHCA should be considered because it allows states to manage Medicaid. This will ensure that as many people as possible are covered. Again, the fact that the AHCA mandates healthy adults without disabilities to find jobs in order to obtain coverage under Medicaid is a way of expanding Medicaid to reach many people. Enhanced coverage is further supported by the AHCA’s proposal to provide subsidies to help poor families to obtain health coverage (Gusmano et al., 2021). Unlike the ACA, the AHCA gives both federal and state agencies the power to determine mandatory benefits, a factor that will enhance proper decision-making regarding the types of people who should receive mandatory benefits. Other advantages associated with the AHCA include special enrollment periods based on a person’s life events and allowing adult children to maintain coverage under their parents’ insurance plan up to the age of 26 (Gusmano et al., 2021). AHCA is indeed a great improvement of the ACA.
Part II
Legislative Visit
Nurses, in their roles as advocates, can plan a legislative visit with a legislator to discuss the intended benefits of health policies. The AHCA is an example of a health policy that requires the attention of nurses considering its anticipated impacts on the United States population and patients. The legislative visit was held with the Senator who forms part of a team that votes either for or against a policy before it is signed into law by the President. The AHCA was developed as a replacement for the ACA (Gusmano et al., 2021). Although it passed the House on May 4, 2017, AHCA has not been signed into law because it has never passed the Senate. One of the stages of the law-making process where the nurse can influence the passage of a healthcare policy or a bill is at the Senate hearing stage (Congress.gov, n.d.). The reason for the legislative visit is to influence the Senator to understand the usefulness of AHCA when compared to the ACA so that she can convince her colleagues who sit in Congress to support the policy.
The success of the legislative visit was greatly influenced by a proper plan that was made prior to the visit. After identifying the Senator, the nurse contacted the office through a phone call to connect to the Senator and explain the purpose of the planned visit. An appointment was scheduled and an agreement was made regarding the duration of the meeting. When preparing for the meeting, the nurse shared a copy of the issues to be discussed. The document contained a detailed explanation of the AHCA including its intended benefits to the American population when compared with the ACA. The actual meeting began with an introduction before sharing important issues with the Senator. Meeting the Senator face-to-face presented a good opportunity to discuss key points and address potential concerns (New York Association on Independent Living, n.d.). It is during the meeting that the nurse presented the “leave behind” document to the legislator, giving reasons why the AHCA should be considered. The nurse followed the legislative visit with an email thanking the legislator for her time and expressing her expectations.
- Was your member in support or in opposition to the AHCA?
My Senator was in support of the AHCA. When compared with the ACA, the Senator believed that the AHCA will expand Medicaid, allowing as many people as possible to access health care and preventive services. The legislator was also happy to learn that the AHCA proposes the elimination of the federal tax penalty on individuals who fail to obtain insurance coverage (Gusmano et al., 2021). Additionally, she supported the AHCA’s goal of allowing the government to provide states with funds to support separate high-risk pools to cover persons with pre-existing medical conditions.
- State three points that you would cover in support of your representative’s position.
The three main points that I would cover in support of my representative’s position include;
- The benefits of Medicaid expansion to the American population
- How elimination of federal tax penalty will improve the quality of life of individuals who are unable to enroll for insurance coverage
- An explanation of how supporting separate high-risk pools would benefit persons with pre-existing medical conditions
- How does your nursing experience influence the advocacy position that you take on the AHCA?
My nursing experience has greatly influenced the advocacy position that I have taken in the AHCA. The knowledge and skills that I have acquired during my years of practice as a nurse enable me to understand the factors that undermine the achievement of health equity and the best strategies that can be implemented to eliminate health disparities. Limited health care access prevents the achievement of health equity in the United States due to high healthcare costs and the lack of health insurance (Courtemanche et al., 2021). Therefore, my support for the AHCA is influenced by the policy’s ability to increase coverage for the United States population in order to improve healthcare access, eliminate health disparities, and enhance health equity.
References
Congress.gov. (n.d.). The legislative process: Overview. https://www.congress.gov/legislative-process
Courtemanche, C., Fazlul, I., Marton, J., Ukert, B., Yelowitz, A., & Zapata, D. (2021). The Affordable Care Act’s Coverage Impacts in the Trump Era. Inquiry: A Journal of Medical Care Organization, Provision and Financing, 58, 469580211042973. https://doi.org/10.1177/00469580211042973
Gusmano, M. K., Sparer, M. S., & Brown, L. D. (2021). Trump v. The ACA. Health Economics, Policy, and Law, 16(3), 251–255. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1744133120000389
Hill, S. C., & Abdus, S. (2021). The effects of Medicaid on access to care and adherence to recommended preventive services. Health Services Research, 56(1), 84–94. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6773.13603
New York Association on Independent Living. (n.d.). Guide to effective legislative visits. https://ilny.us/phocadownload/SSAN/SSAN%20Guide%20To%20Effective%20Legislative%20Meetings.pdf