Select one health policy that addresses a population’s health risk or disparity. Policies may be considered at the unit, organizational, community, local, or state level.
Determine the purpose and intended impact of the policy. Assess the congruence of the policy with current national population health goals and objectives (such as the Healthy People initiative or another national initiative). Consider recommendations to further address the health risk or disparity based on your analysis.
Include the following sections:
Application of Course Knowledge: Answer all questions/criteria with explanations and detail.
Describe one health policy related to an identified health risk or disparity.
Summarize the intended impact of the policy on the risk or disparity.
Examine the policy within the context of a national population health initiative and determine the degree to which the policy is congruent with that national population health goal and/or objective.
Propose one strategy to address the health risk or disparity.
Summarize the intended impact of the policy on the risk or disparity.
The intended impact of the Medicaid expansion is multi-faceted:
Increase Access to Care: The immediate goal is to provide comprehensive, affordable health insurance to millions of previously uninsured, low-income adults, allowing them to utilize preventive services, primary care, and chronic disease management.
Improve Health Outcomes: By increasing access to regular care, the policy is intended to improve health outcomes, particularly for chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and mental health issues, reducing reliance on expensive emergency room visits.
Reduce Financial Risk: It is intended to eliminate the high risk of medical debt and financial catastrophe for low-income families by ensuring that medical costs are covered.
Reduce Racial/Ethnic Disparities: Given that low-income adults are disproportionately members of racial and ethnic minority groups, the policy is intended to narrow health access and outcome gaps between these populations and the general population.
Sample Answer
A key health policy addressing a population health disparity is the State-Level Medicaid Expansion authorized under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This policy directly aims to reduce the health and financial risks associated with being uninsured.
Application of Course Knowledge
Describe one health policy related to an identified health risk or disparity.
The selected health policy is the State-Level Medicaid Expansion (a provision of the ACA).
Identified Health Risk/Disparity: The primary disparity addressed is lack of health insurance coverage and subsequent disparities in access to care, health outcomes, and financial burden among low-income adults (up to 138% of the Federal Poverty Level) who do not qualify for traditional Medicaid. Prior to the ACA, many adults without dependent children were ineligible for Medicaid regardless of how low their income was, creating a coverage gap.
Policy Level: State and Federal Level. The policy is a federal option, but each state must individually choose to adopt the expansion.