Healthcare Finance Report: Healthcare Reform and Tax Policies

This report focuses on the financial aspects of healthcare, particularly exploring the impact of reforms and tax policies. It examines the effects of the Massachusetts healthcare reform on reducing the financial burden on patients, as supported by Arrieta's (2013) research, which found a significant reduction in hospital debt. The report also discusses current tax reforms, highlighting the implications of the 2019 Jobs Act, which lowered tax rates for healthcare industries. Siwicki (2019) notes that these tax cuts are expected to have a substantial impact on healthcare finances. The analysis emphasizes the importance of these reforms in improving the financial health of healthcare facilities and making services more accessible to the population. The report references relevant sources to support its findings and provides a concise overview of the key issues in healthcare finance.

Running head: HEALTHCARE FINANCE 1
Healthcare Finance
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

HEALTHCARE FINANCE 2
Healthcare Finance
Question One
Reforms on healthcare finance involve policy changes that are geared towards
transforming the financial needs of diverse health institutions. Such improvements usually have
positive impacts on healthcare finance. They tend to reduce the financial burden of the healthcare
sector. For instance, the health care reform of Massachusetts was implemented to reduce the
monetary problem of medical care. In his study, Arrieta (2013) used the financial information of
hospitals to establish the impact of the reform on pending medical finances. He established that
the change lessened the burden of finances for patients. The decrease was equivalent to 26
percent of the hospital debt. Thus, the reform was beneficial to the vulnerable population.
Question Two
One of the current topics being addressed by the federal government is the issue of tax
reforms for healthcare industries. One of the major causes of financial problems in most
healthcare facilities has been the issue of higher tax rates. The federal government has been
imposing very high taxes on the healthcare sector. As a result, healthcare services have been
expensive. Thus, most vulnerable populations have been unable to afford or settle their hospital
bills. However, the federal government has currently come up with a way of solving this issue. In
his article, Siwicki (2019) states most healthcare firms will start feeling substantial impacts of
the tax cuts that were implemented in 2017. The 2019 Jobs Act has increased the benefits earned
by most profitable healthcare industries. One such benefit is the reduced rate of taxes on
earnings. The tax rates were lowered from 35% down to 21% since early 2018.

HEALTHCARE FINANCE 3
References
Arrieta, A. (2013). The impact of the Massachusetts health care reform on unpaid medical
bills. INQUIRY: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and
Financing, 50(3), 165-176.
Siwicki, B. (2019). Here are 6 major issues facing healthcare in 2019, according to PwC.
[online] Healthcare IT News. Available at: https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/here-
are-6-major-issues-facing-healthcare-2019-according-pwc [Accessed 6 Oct. 2019].