This course was designed to develop skills that will help you be an effective student and to also help you build a multidisciplinary approach to health. For this Assignment, you reflect on becoming a scholar-practitioner, social change agent, and part of a multidisciplinary field. After reviewing your Learning Resources for this course, consider the issue you addressed in Week 1 and examine how it can be addressed from a multidisciplinary perspective.

The Assignment (1-2 pages)

Explain how your understanding of the multidisciplinary nature of the course content has changed or been validated.

Explain how the issue you discussed in Week 1 of the course can be addressed from a multidisciplinary perspective.

Expand on your insights utilizing the Learning Resources.

Include proper APA citations and references (see Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association for assistance).

My Motivation to Change-

In the United States having health insurance is a very crucial step toward accessing needed primary care, health care specialists, and emergency treatment, however, health insurance by itself does not ensure the only access for patients. Access care is just as important as having access to insurance; if a patient doesn't have access to care there would be limitations to our patient health care needs. According to Hall (2008) some populations experience additional barriers in access to preventive health services due to lack of transportation to providers' offices, lack of knowledge about preventive care, long waits to get an appointment, low health literacy, and inability to pay the high-deductible of many insurance plans and/or co-pays for receiving treatment. However, it is also imperative and necessary to have comprehensive coverage, because providers are very cautious when it comes to accepting the individual's health insurance, relatively close proximity of providers to patients, and primary care providers in the community.

According to National Conference of State Legislatures (2013) the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA) aims to expand health coverage for up to 32 million uninsured Americans. It relies on a combination of health insurance reforms, insurance exchanges in all 50 states, Medicaid expansions, subsidies, tax credits and mandates. The law also allocates funds to improve quality and halts certain widely criticized insurance practices. The biggest changes come in January 2014 when Medicaid expands and states create exchanges or marketplaces for health insurance. States have considered and acted on hundreds of ACA-related laws, with much more to do and decide in 2013.

The Affordable Care Act is providing relief from skyrocketing health insurance costs and is ensuring Americans have secure, stable, and affordable health insurance. According to Institute of Medicine (2010) in 2010 HHS began implementing new regulations affecting the health insurance market aimed at increasing consumer protections and at creating a more competitive insurance market. This increased oversight is making health care more responsive to the needs of its patients, healthcare providers, and other stakeholders.

Health insurance reform is creating and expanding health insurance that gather together millions of individuals and small businesses and their employees to increase purchasing power and competition in the insurance market, a luxury that only large employers currently enjoy. The ultimate goal of expanding insurance coverage should be to decreased purchasing power and competition, in turn, to premiums more affordable. If follow through the expanding insurance coverage will also reduce administrative costs for individuals and small businesses and their employees by enabling them to make more straightforward comparisons of the prices, benefits, and quality of health plans.

According to National Conference of State Legislatures (2013) the Affordable Care Act establishes requirements and options for states that build on existing state regulation of health insurance. These include standard-price insurance coverage for individuals with pre-existing conditions, family coverage that includes dependent members up to age 26, expanded review of premium rates, required ratios of insurer expenditures on health services, consumer assistance or ombudsman offices and patients' rights to appeal denied coverage. A dozen such provisions are in place for 2010-2013, including optional federal grants to states. In 2011-13 at least 45 states considered related bills. A major focus for 2013 is more uniform mandated "essential health benefits" based on latest HHS regulations. Future provisions include preventive screenings and services with no co-payments, no lifetime or annual limits on standard policies and options for multi-state or out-of-state health insurance purchasing.

In the United States million Americans lack access to affordable health insurance. Additionally, unanticipated consequences might arise, are individuals who do have health insurance have incomplete coverage that may include exclusions for pre-existing conditions, or they may be one step away from losing coverage because of a change in employment. Individuals with health insurance face increasingly high premiums and medical costs that drive some to bankruptcy or force choices between maintaining health insurance coverage and paying for other household essentials.