Written+Assignment+-+GOVT+2302+-+Spring+2013


 * Critically Assessing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.**

A couple months back, the Supreme Court provided closure (sort of) for the controversy over The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) by ruling parts of it constitutional and parts unconstitutional. While opponents pledge to repeal it, there a reasonable chance that it is now settled law, which gives us an opportunity to dig into it meaningfully. The issues surrounding the act are complex and multifaceted, whcih is why I find it very useful for an analysis of American (and Texas) government.

The simplest way to describe the assignment is to select some aspect of the law and provide a critical analysis of it in at least 1000 words. Remember that you will be expected to turn in work that is not only argued well, but is grammatically correct with proper spelling. You must also provide at least 3 citations for your work, and your facts must be accurate.

There are multiple angles you can look at, and I want you to spend some time becoming comfortable with a variety of aspects of the law before you select one and begin your work. I will help you along the way in order to make sure you the best work possible.

There are many things you could choose to look at, including the following:

- The history of health policy in the US. - Ideological disputes over health policy. - The battle over passage in Congress. - The actual content of the bill. - The various proposals that were offered instead of the individual mandate. - The coordinated effort to find the ACA unconstitutional. - The content of the Supreme Court decision. - The impact the law is having on the states. - Public opinion on the act, and the various parts of it.

This just scratches the surface, feel free to go in whichever direction you think is most interesting to you. Just be sure to make it good. Keep referring to the syllabus, and whatever messages I send out about this assignment to keep track of due dates and other matter.

I'll add content to this page over the course of the semester. My intent is to use this assignment to build classroom material on health policy in the US and Texas, and I want you to help me do so. So thanks in advance.