Saturday, December 28, 2019

The Homeless Population And The Health Care Act Essay

The Homeless Population and Barriers to Health Care There are currently 564,708 homeless individuals in the United States (U.S.), however this is just an estimate as there are probably hundreds that go uncounted, during PIT (point-in-time count) or remain unregistered with non-profit agencies providing services (The National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2016). Before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) most homeless individuals did not have health insurance, as provisions for these individuals as well as the low-income population could only be accepted into the Medi-cal / Medicaid program, if they had children that were eligible. Since ACA was implemented a large percentage of the homeless are insured, but, this does not mean that the preexisting gaps and barriers to access health care do not exist. They do. Being homeless has been found to correlate to a poor health status (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2016). In fact, homeless individuals are at risk and experience more chronic illnes s than someone who has housing. Additionally, once chronic illness develops in a homeless individual, they are at higher risk for comorbid conditions, new conditions (such as skin disorders and respiratory illness) and an acceleration in the development of their disease(s). Current barriers include: a mistrust of the medical community, not having a primary physician, not following through on regular medical appointments, and lack of a support system; all of these having the potential to causeShow MoreRelatedVulnerable Population the homeless vetrans Essay1728 Words   |  7 Pagesï » ¿ A Vulnerable Population the Homeless Veterans Patricia Dilbert NUR/440 April 7, 2014 Deanna Radford, MSN, RN, CNE A Vulnerable Population the homeless Veterans In this presentation, we will explore a vulnerable population with the focus on the homeless veterans. 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