Summary by The Market Institute of Heritage Backgrounder #2887
The Heritage Foundation issued Backgrounder #2887 on the impact of the Affordable Care Act on the health care workforce. With an estimated 30 million people obtaining health insurance through the ACA, a sizable workforce will be necessary to meet demand. The already fragile workforce will face increased stress, and burden as well as millions of hours of new paperwork that will need to be addressed because of the ACA. The American health care workforce has faced shortages for decades and this new increased workload may finally be the final straw to break the camel’s back. System overload is inevitable and as a result, individuals and families will face longer wait times, greater difficulty accessing providers, shortened time with providers, increased costs, and new frustrations with care delivery.
Despite best efforts to increase the workforce, every health profession is facing shortage. It was expected to not be able to meet the demands of population growth and an aging population, let alone the consequences of a new law that places millions of new people in insurance pools, and Medicaid. The end result could be disastrous. The number of seniors in the United States is expected to jump 9% by 2050, accounting for 1/5th of the population, which means even more stress on the financial and workforce aspects of health care. Rural Americans are facing critical shortfalls in health care. HHS has estimated almost 8,000 new primary care physicians are needed to meet demand. Shortages will result in increased morbidity and mortality for rural Americans.
The ACA’s new pressures will exacerbate attrition from burnout and dissatisfaction, worsening the existing shortage. Health care is a labor-intensive sector. The triple aim of increased quality and satisfaction, reduced costs, and increased health can be guaranteed only with an efficient workforce. There needs to be a plan in mind to not only increase the primary care physician workforce, but hire more nurse practitioners, increase efficiency, and incentivizing medical practitioners to stay in their field (tort reform is a good first step). The ACA’s unintended consequences can no longer be ignored. Reform can happen in a way that does not and should not affect quality care for patients.
Link to Backgrounder #2887:
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2014/03/the-impact-of-the-affordable-care-act-on-the-health-care-workforce
