title: Opportunities for social work under the Affordable Care Act: A call for action.
abstract: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has profoundly restructured American health care. Numerous social work authors have commented on the importance of the ACA's reforms to social work practice, education, and research. This article summarizes the literature, adds relevant information, and makes recommendations for future actions. The policy, opinion, and peer-reviewed literatures were systematically reviewed. Sixty-three publications appeared between 2010 and 2015 are included. Five themes emerged, as follows: 1) the crucial provisions of the ACA, 2) the natural affinity of social work and the ACA reforms, 3) curricular adaptations needed to address changing workforce needs, 4) areas for continued social work advocacy, and 5) opportunities for high-impact social work research. This article provides a comprehensive introduction to the ACA, its reforms, and opportunities for social work to assume a high visibility leadership role in implementing the reforms, with particular emphasis on needed curricular changes and opportunities for research.
authors.affiliation: a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration , Rockville , Maryland , USA.
authors.forename: Sean
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.affiliation: b School of Social Work, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania , USA.
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Greeno
authors.affiliation: a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration , Rockville , Maryland , USA.
authors.forename: Judith
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Teich
authors.affiliation: c Office of National Drug Control Policy , Washington , District of Columbia , USA.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Delany
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000379:methods; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006291:Health Policy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D000070516:Intersectoral Collaboration; D010344:Patient Advocacy; D058991:Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; D012947:Social Work / Q000193:education; D014481:United States
keywords: Affordable Care Act; health care reform; integrated care; policy; social work; social work practice