302783
Knowledge, Benefits, and Concerns about the Affordable Care Act for Individuals Across the Lifespan
Methods: Twelve one-hour focus groups (FGs) were conducted with 123 individuals in one southern county in November-December 2013. FGs were divided by age (younger/older), race/ethnicity (white/African American/Latino), and language (English/Spanish). For this analysis, transcripts were analyzed for themes by age.
Results: 57% of participants were older (Mage: 53); 43% were younger (Mage: 29). 64% were female. 29% were White, 49% African American, 20% Latino, 2% mixed race. Participants were employed full-time (25%), part-time (19%) or unemployed (25%); and either did not have health insurance (37%), were on Medicaid (17%), or were insured through an employer (11%).
All participants had heard of the ACA, labeling it as "confusing" and "overwhelming" due to excessive yet unclear or biased media coverage. Both older and younger groups mentioned the importance of preventive care and being covered with pre-existing medical conditions. Younger groups discussed the value of making healthcare affordable to all. Conversely, costs associated with coverage represented a major concern. Younger groups worried about rises in premiums; older adults discussed penalties associated with not having insurance. Both groups mentioned concerns about ACA sustainability.
Discussion: The ACA is an important issue for individuals across the lifespan. Targeted ACA education messages are needed to reduce confusion and increase understanding of its implications. Benefits and concerns of both younger and older adults should be addressed in all education efforts.
Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health educationAssessment of individual and community needs for health education
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Learning Objectives:
Evaluate community members’ knowledge and perceptions of the Affordable Care Act.
Identify similarities and differences in knowledge and perceptions across the lifespan.
Keyword(s): Affordable Care Act, Aging
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a project coordinator on this grant and led the focus group portion of this project. I helped develop the focus group protocol, organize and moderate the focus groups, as well as analyze the data.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.