Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay

Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay

Assignment 1

Select a House of Representatives or Senate bill (national or state level), either currently in process or one that has been passed within the last year that impacts mental health care operations, advanced practice nursing, or mental health care financing.

The bill has been identified as H.R. 1058 (116^th): Autism Collaboration, Accountability, Research, Education, and Support Act of 2019. It is cited as Autism CARES Act of 2019. The legislation reauthorized some provisions of the Public Health Service Act (PHS Act) with the intention of improving autism management. It is a federal legislation that specifically focuses on amending the PHS Act to enhance the activities of the National Institution of Health with regards to research and management of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In addition, the legislation reauthorizes the provisions of PHS Act that are concerned with education, early detection and intervention targeted at ASD. Besides that, the legislation mandates the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) to continue with its activities. The legislation offers three other advantages not included in the prior version of PHS Act. The first advantage is that the changes target all persons with ASD rather than targeting only the youth, an inherent shortcoming in the previous framing of PHS Act framing Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay. The second advantage is that it focuses funding on shortages identified in personal health services. The third advantage is that it reduces health-outcome disparities across diverse populations (GovTrack, 2020).

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The Autism CARES Act of 2019 was introduced into the 116^th congress on 7^th February 2019 and sponsored by Rep. Christopher “Chris” Smith of New Jersey’s 4th congressional district. It was then referred to the Health Committee that held hearings on 25^th June 2019 and 11^th June 2019. The legislation was ordered reported by the committee on 17^th July 2019 with the recommendation that the full chamber consider the bill further. The house committee on energy and commerce reported on the bill on 23^rd July 2019, and offered helpful exclamatory background information on the bill’s intentions and the issues it addressed. The Congress voted to pass the bill on 24^th July 2014. The Senate voted to pass the bill on 19^th September 2019. The bill was signed into law by the president on 30^th September 2019 (GovTrack, 2020).

Its legislative history dates back to 2006 when President George W. Bush signed it into law as Combating Autism Act (P.L. 109-416). The intention of the law was to offer coordinated federal response to the dramatic increase in persons diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in the country. It increased public investment to address the growing needs of persons diagnosed with autism spectrum of disorders, while authorizing the IACC to coordinate federal efforts targeted at the disorder. The legislation was reauthorized in 2014 as the Autism CARES Act (P.L. 113-157). It had to be reauthorized by September 2019 for the Federal activities conducted under the legislation to continue (Autism Society, 2020).

Discuss your support or opposition of the Bill based on policy, legal, and ethical considerations, and the Christian worldview.

The Autism CARES Act of 2019 is a good legislation that addresses legitimate policy concerns that improve autism management at the federal level in the USA. The legislation offers three advantages from the policy perspective. Firstly, it reauthorizes Combating Autism Act of 2006 thus ensuring that the gains made over the years are continued and not lost. Secondly, it expands the provisions presented in previous legislation so that federal intervention has greater impact Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay. Thirdly, it ensures that there is federal support for research, prevalence tracking, services and other government activities targeted at autism. Fourthly, it increases the annual federal budget for autism management efforts with $1.8 billion allocated to fund efforts through 2024. The funding is intended to primarily support research grants that advance scientific understanding of ASD, and develop treatments for medical conditions associated with ASD. Also, the funding helps address the needs of persons affected by ASD. Fifthly, it expands the focus of federal-based intervention efforts by ensuring that support is provided for persons with ASD while responding on their well-being and health throughout their entire lifespan. Finally, it reauthorizes and expands the IACC (GovTrack, 2020) Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay.

In addition to having policy implications, the legislation has ethical implications. It acknowledges that autism is a lifelong condition. The previous legislation targeted the youth so that other age groups were left with unmet needs. The new legislation support the existing activities, and expands them so that health disparities are reduced even as services are provided throughout the lifespan (GovTrack, 2020). The health disparities exist along lines of demographic groups and they are ethically wrong because they exemplify injustices. Through focusing on the youth, the previous legislation presented ethical concerns as other age groups were ignored although they had needs. Utilitarian and Kantian ethics all offer theoretical reasons for considering health disparities as ethically wrong, as do many other ethical principles. The declaration of human rights further supports (ethically) efforts to address health disparities. Every American with ASD has the right to reasonable equal access to health care, a right that was violated by the previous legislation that only targeted the youth. The new legislation condemns unjust practices while promoting just practices, and avoids doing harm to others through ensuring that every person with ASD has an equal opportunity to receive care. Besides that, it is ethically problematic that there were persons with ASD who bore the societal burdens of the medical but who did not receive the same basic benefits that youths with ASD received (Sang & Dearholt, 2018). Overall, the new legislation ensures that all persons with ASD experience reasonably equivalent health outcomes thus addressing the ethical concern of health disparity presented in previous legislation.

Also, the legislation has legal implications. The previous legislation were due to expire with the implication that the activities they supported would halt unless new legislation was presented. Presenting the new legislation guarantees that federal autism management programs and activities have the legal foundation to continue (Pokorski, 2018).

The Autism CARES Act of 2019 is aligned with the Christian worldview that focuses on stewardship and compassion. Persons with ASD cannot take care of themselves, and it is only right that the government intervenes in facilitating the management of their medical condition. This is affirmed in the Bible when Jesus instructs his disciples and followers to take care of others as his substitutes (Mathew 25:40). Given that the federal government has extensive public resources and is in office with the primary objective of addressing public concerns, then it is not hard to accept that they are stewards. As stewards, the federal government can use its powerful means to ensure that persons with ASD to get care. Overall, the legislation ensures that the federal government serves the needs of its citizens rather than being focused profit, thus matching the Christian worldview that advocates for compassion and stewardship (Shellenbarger, 2019). Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay

Discuss how the bill impacts, or will impact, the role of the PMHNP. Discuss the impact on health care quality and outcomes.

The Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts resource allocation to support the delivery of nursing care. It highlights the role of PMHNP to influence policy through their responsibility and capacity to influence health care delivery systems. The PMHNP practice is based on the science of caring and science of human health. It operates from a perspective that values every member of the society equally and holistically while seeking to foster and advance public health across all society levels and throughout the lifespan. To achieve these objectives, PMHNP understand that legislation must define and integrate the appropriate standards for care delivery while addressing the necessary condition for delivering care. Through policy work, nurses can identify and present the shortcomings of the legislation, and influence the appropriate changes to assure high care quality with regards to nursing processes and standards. In essence, the legislation highlights the role of PMHNP as policy advocates who can influence policy while helping to shape care. Similarly, the American Nurses Association and National League for Nursing highlight the role of PMHNP as policy advocates by noting that it is reasonable for PMHNP to identify problems with the policies affecting their practice and galvanize other stakeholders to make the appropriate changes (Christensen & Simmons, 2019). In addition, the legislation identifies the role of PMHNP in conducting the activities identified in the PMHNP. Through the legislation, there is an expectation that PMHNP will engage in ASD research activities, manage surveillance activities, and facilitate care delivery with regards to public education, early detection and intervention (Christensen & Simmons, 2019).

The legislation has a profound impact on health care quality and outcomes. It is the primary source of federal funding for autism monitoring, training, services and research. It requires and supports research and programs to benefit persons with ASD. It manages a center of excellence in autism surveillance and epidemiology. It supports the IACC and its plan. Besides that, it development treatments for ASD. Also, it trains medical personnel to detect and diagnose ASD. Additionally, it monitors ASD prevalence (GovTrack, 2020). ASD is a present concern since management efforts are hindered by a dearth of information that would be best addressed through research. The legislation ensures that significant advances would be reported in three areas. Firstly, research efforts are well coordinated through supporting research funded by the National Institute of Health. Secondly, data and surveillance is streamlined through building infrastructure at the CDC to monitor ASD. Finally, training efforts are supported to address the reported shortages of personnel who facilitate screening, diagnosis and treatment efforts (Autism Society, 2020). As a result, the legislation improves health care quality and outcomes. Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay

References

Autism Society (2020). Autism CARES Act Reauthorization (2019). Retrieved from https://www.autism-society.org/public-policy/autism-cares-act-reauthorization-2019/

Christensen, L. & Simmons, L. (2019). The scope of practice for academic nurse educators and academic clinical nurse educators (3^rd ed.). Riverwoods, IL: Wolters Kluwer Health.

GovTrack (2020). H.R. 1058 — 116th Congress: Autism Collaboration, Accountability, Research, Education, and Support Act of 2019. Retrieved from https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/hr1058

Pokorski, M. (2018). Current concepts in medical research and practice: advances in experimental medicine and biology. Cham: Springer International Publishing AG.

Sang, D. & Dearholt, S. (2018). John Hopkins nursing evidence-based practice (3^rd ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Sigma Theta Tau International.

Shellenbarger, T. (2019). Clinical nurse educator competencies: creating an evidence-based practice for academic clinical nurse educators. Riverwoods, IL: Wolters Kluwer Health. Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay

Select a House of Representatives or Senate bill (national or state level), either currently in process or one that has been passed within the last year that impacts mental health care operations, advanced practice nursing, or mental health care financing. (Include the name of the bill: e.g., H.R. 4909 (115th): Stop School Violence Act of 2018. Note if the bill is federal or state level legislation and indicate the state, if applicable. Also note if the bill was passed and the date, if in committee [house or senate], or if awaiting the president’s signature). Discuss your support or opposition of the Bill based on policy, legal, and ethical
considerations, and the Christian worldview. Consider the nursing practice act in state of Maryland and other state-level documents pertaining to practice, the Social Policy Statement of the American Nurses Association, and your biblical worldview as you support your viewpoint. Consider funding of the bill and who should pay, if applicable. Discuss how the bill impacts, or will impact, the role of the PMHNP. Discuss the impact on health care quality and outcomes.

5 pages in APA format, with at least 3 peer-reviewed references in addition to the course textbooks and the Bible.

Here are some websites for consideration to locate and track bills:
• United States Bills Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay
• State Bills
• https://www.congress.gov Autism CARES Act of 2019 impacts on nursing essay