Law

Introduction

A form of business organization is the general structure in which a business is constituted. There are three forms of business organizations namely: sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporations. A sole proprietorship is a business form that is run and owned by one individual (Angualia, 2010). The advantages of a sole trader are that he takes all the profits, it is easy to start, family members assist in the running of the business, and decision making is easy because it depends on one individual.

However, this form of business organization has the disadvantage of unlimited liability which means that the owner takes all the risks and losses. A sole proprietorship will end when the owner dies. Also, the capital raised to start a sole proprietorship is limited to the owner’s capital. The other disadvantage of a sole proprietorship is that it is not easily transferable from one person to another.

Analysis

A partnership is a form of the business organization formed by more than two people called partners or shareholders. The partners write the rules of the partnership called the partnership agreement. The partnership is easy to start, large amounts of capital are raised, partners share unlimited liability and the business will go on in case one partner dies. The disadvantage is that decision making becomes a problem because all partners must be consulted before a decision is made. Also, ownership is not easily transferable (Reinier, 2004).

Corporations are the largest forms of business organizations formed by more than 20 people. The first stage involves forming the articles of incorporation and setting out the by-laws to govern the corporation (Angualia, 2010). This form of business organization has the advantage of large amounts of capital are raised, the death of one person does not affect the continuity of the corporation, ownership is easily transferable and capital is obtained through the sale of shares. The disadvantage is that it has many legal requirements, decision making is difficult, and the problem of double taxation.

The main goal of financial managers within a corporation is to develop policies that will best implement the objectives of the corporation and increase the value of its shares in the stock exchange market (Angualia, 2010). I agree with this goal because the corporation’s policies keep on changing from time to time according to the government’s security laws and the global accounting principles and procedures. This requires managers to adjust to any changes when they arise (Angualia, 2010).

Anne Kurtz, you are right about the forms of business organizations you have listed. What you need to know about the partnership is that it is formed by a maximum of 20 people. On the corporations, the bylaws are drafted by the owners of the corporation and are only provided for registration. Financial ability can not be an advantage of the sole proprietorship because he is limited to the amount of capital he has.

Rhonda Payne, it is true that the three forms of business organizations are sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporations. You mentioned the silent partner among the types of partners; does he take part in the management of the organization? Also, you did not tell much about the partnership deed document which shows how partners share profits. Corporations are taxed twice as a corporation and also each shareholder is taxed separately and this its disadvantage (Dignam et al. 2006).

References

Angualia, D. (2010). “ Goals of a Multinational Corporation and the Role of a Financial Manager.” 49 (2): 134-154.

Dignam, A. & Lowry, J. (2006) “ Company Law” New York: Oxford University Press.

Reinier, H. (2004). “Anatomy of Corporate Law: A Comparative and Functional Approach.” New York: Oxford University Press.

Synopsis

The Health Care Law was signed by president Obama on March 23, 2010. The law is aimed at improving the health care system in the country. If the will function as it was planned, the quality of the medical care will be improved and health care insurance will be affordable to everybody. However, the implementation of the issues provided in the law can be a big threat to the country’s economy, affect the quality of the medical care and make the cost of the insurance very high. Moreover, in the light of new reforms, many Americans can lose their healthcare coverage. As we can see, the Health Care Law should be repealed and considered one more time in order to provide more affordable decisions for the implementation of the issues provided. Special attention should be paid to health insurance exchanges as a core idea of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Introduction

The Health care Law signed by president of the Unites States of America Barack Obama is considered to be one of the most significant conversions that were implemented in the health care system of the United States. The law covers nearly all aspects of the health care system staring with insurance and ending with the delivery of services. The aims of the healthcare reform are improving the quality of the Medicare and provide every American with affordable medical insurance. However, it still provokes much debate and confusions about the impact of the law on economy of the country, quality of the health care services, as well as life of Americans. There were numerous suggestions to repeal the Health Care reform, especially from the side of Republicans. In this paper, we are going to discuss the disadvantages of the Health Care Law and provide the reasons to repeal it, as well as suggest several recommendations to improve it.

Methods

In this report, we used the method of the critical analysis of the specialized literature that deal with the Health Care Law analysis and critique. In order to support the idea that Health Care Law should be repealed, we analyzed the key policy issues of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act presented in the “President Obama’s Health Care Plan” and recent surveys on “Potential Impact of State Health Programs” provided by the Legislative Analyst’s Office, as well as the work by Paul Howard, “The Impact of the Affordable Care Act On the Economy, Employers, and the Workforce” and “Fund Report” on key points and lacks of the Affordable Care Act provided by Timothy Stoltzfus Jost, J.D.

Background

During the elections of the 2008, the candidate Barack Obama’s main point in the campaign was to reform the health care system of the United States as it was disadvantageous for the economy of the country. He argued that health services should be equal and affordable for everyone. Since the projects of the Health Care Reform were passed to the House, it was debated for many times and did not have support from the Republicans and many Democrats as well. In January 2010, president provided his own proposal health care bill and placed pressure on Houses to pass it. Finally, on March 23, 2010 President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (HR 3590) into law.

According to this Obama’s health care plan, the main purposes of the law are the following ones: “It will provide more security and stability to those who have health insurance. It will provide insurance to those who don’t. And it will lower the cost of health care for our families, our businesses, and our government” (“President’s Obama’s Health Care Plan”, 2010, p. 1). As we can see, the idea of the law is to improve the health care system in the United States and make it equal for all citizens. However, there are many arguments that this law will be a threat to national economy and people. This is the main claim provided by Republicans who strive to repeal the Health Care Law.

Key Points of the Health Care Law

In order to analyze why the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act can be disadvantageous for the country’s economy and American citizens, we should analyze the key points of the law. Thus “the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is far-reaching legislation that will change how millions of Americans access health care coverage” (Tailor, 2010, p. 2).

The law offers the following primary provisions as creating an individual mandate (all citizens should have health insurance or pay a penalty); establishing the American Health Benefit Exchanges (the individuals who has no access to affordable employer coverage could purchase it); changing, private health insurance coverage (new requirements for health plans that will provide individuals with affordable coverage and prevent them from losing it); law-income and childless adults will be mandated coverage; providing coverage to individuals who cannot purchase it or regarded as medically uninsurable. (Tailor, 2010, p. 3). However, behind the benefits presented in the Health Care Law Plan, their implementation needs improvement, moreover, the results of such reforms will be far from beneficial for many American people as well as for the country’s economy.

Reasons to repeal Health Care Law

In the light of negative influence of particular points in the Health Care Law, it should be repealed, or reviewed accordingly. In this part of the report, we are going to provide reasons to repeal Health Care Law. First of all, it is a great economic impact, as it will increase the deficit and not reduce it, the insurance cost will raise and the employment will be reduced, finally, regulatory uncertainty under the law will hinder job creation (Howard, n. d., p. 2). The implementation of the strategies mentioned in the Act needs much funding and spending, “the reduction of federal deficit will be an enormous boon for U. S. economy” (Howard, n. d., p. 2). In this light, it will cause the cuts in the government spending. Providing coverage to “medically uninsured” will increase health care spending and cost of the medical services and care goods.

The Health Care Law was claimed to reduce the deficit, however, “the CBO notes that the federal government will spend about $401 billion more on health care programs in the Affordable Care Act’s first decade, while increasing federal revenues, through taxes and fees, by an even greater amount, $525 billion” (Howard, n. d., p. 2). In addition, there will be many implementation costs. Moreover, “providing coverage for everybody” implies that employer should be preoccupied with this question, as a result, the employer will cover expenses on coverage while reducing employee wages or job creation. In addition, under the new law, many Americans can lose current health care plans. Moreover, it is unconstitutionally to force every person buy health insurance or pay penalty. Finally, such reforms will lead to lowering of the quality of the medical services, as the main focus of the law is put on the cost and health coverage of people.

Recommendations

In order to prevent the negative consequences of the Health Care Law, the legislator should address the government with comprehensive analysis of the consequences that it can lead to, and appropriate solutions to these problems in the legislative session. We suggest you to address these recommendations in the next session in Senate before negative consequences of the law make itself felt. This plan may contain the next suggestions: to establish the cost control through “minimizing administrative cost and adverse selection” (Jost, 2010, p. 6).

In addition, in will be valuable to protect the introduced exchanges from adverse selections which means “the disproportionate purchase of health insurance by the least healthy individuals” (Jost, 2010, p. 6). The exchange model should provide more choice flexibility for customers. Transparency and disclosure are very important while implementing the Act, as it will allow the government control over situation. The ACA provisions should enforce the competition among insures with the focus on prices provided and quality of services.

Conclusion

Thus, we can see that the Health Care Law should be repealed, otherwise, it can lead to great economic problems, as well as increase the level of unemployment and lower the quality of medical services and make the cost of the medic aid very high. In addition, it will enforce the deficit in the country and hinder job creation. Many points of the law and their implementation need close attention and improvement.

References

Jost, T. S. (2010), “Health Insurance Exchanges and the Affordable Care Act: Key Policy Issues”. The Commonwealth Fund. Web.

Howard, P. “The Impact of the Affordable Care Act: On the Economy, Employers, and the Workforce”. Web.

“President Obama’s Health Care Plan”. Web.

Tailor, M. (2010). “The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: An Overview of Its Potential Impact on State Health Programs”. Legislative Analyst. Web.

The Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights can be viewed as the documents that shaped the political, legal, and even economic history of America. Overall, the analysis of these documents can show that the Founding Fathers developed a set of reliable safeguards that could shield the society from the risks of totalitarianism. More importantly, they made the country more resilient to various social stressors. This is one of the main points that can be made. Much attention should be paid to the following issues:

1. due process or legal requirements that regulate the work of law-enforcement agencies;
2. the right to bear arms;
3. freedom of speech or the ability to express one’s thoughts without restraint.

These privileges reflect the values of people who lived in America at the end of the eighteenth century. There requirements were ratified in 1791, and since that time, they have often been applied by legal professionals. Certainly, one cannot say that by the standards of the twenty-first century, these provisions look very revolutionary. Such an assumption can hardly be called accurate. Nevertheless, these elements were unprecedented even during the age of Enlightenment. This is why they can be singled out among others. This paper will explain why these provisions are critical for protecting the rights of citizens against the state oppression.

Overall, the Constitution of the United States can be viewed as the main law which regulates the functioning of American government. This document outlines some of the main principles such as the division of state powers; furthermore, it clearly indicates that America is a representative democracy (The United States Government, 1787, unpaged). Yet, one should also remember about the provisions which identify the rights of individual citizens. These provisions are included in the Bill of Rights or amendments to the constitution of the country. Overall, this law lays the foundations for the “relationships of the government to its citizens” (Ashcroft & Ashcroft, 2014, p. 5).

These are the main aspects that can be singled out. At first, one should speak about the rights to due process (The United States Government, 1789). This term can be described as a set of rules, according to which the society has to respect the natural rights of citizens. For example, due process means that a person can appeal the decision of the court. Furthermore, an individual should have access to the trial by jury. This protection is particularly relevant to such an area as criminal justice. The main implication of this requirement is that the state cannot become an all-powerful entity that can deprive citizens of their liberty and dignity. This inclusion of this element in the Bill of Rights is one of the reasons why American people could put trust in the courts. Furthermore, this safeguard is critical for protecting the property rights of citizens.

Furthermore, it is possible to speak about the right to bear arms (The United States Government, 1789). It should be noted that in the eighteenth century, this right was given mostly to the representatives of aristocracy (Muchembled, 2012, p. 177). Other social groups were not able to use weapons in order to protect themselves against injustice (Muchembled, 2012, p. 177). The authors of the Second Amendment say that this opportunity is “necessary to the security of a free State” (The United States Government, 1789, unpaged). In turn, the amendments included in the U.S. Constitution equaled the opportunities which were available to citizens. To a great extent, American legislators departed from the tradition which existed in other countries. In most cases, the governments of other countries did not enable citizens to use force against the state, even if it had been unjust. This is why the right to bear arms should not be overlooked by the readers.

Furthermore, it is important to remember about the freedom of speech or the opportunity to express one’s views without the threat of legal prosecution (The United States Government, 1989). According to this document, “Congress shall make no law” that can prevent a person from speaking openly (The United States Government, 1989, unpaged). Again, it is important to say that in many other countries, the state was able to suppress the press. In Europe, this practice could be very widespread. However, the same thing could not be said about America in which policy-makers could be subjected to criticism. More importantly, this opportunity was important for improving the work of governmental organizations. In many cases, the improvement was the response to public criticism. This is why the impact of this requirement should not be disregarded by the readers of these documents.

On the whole, these elements of the U.S. Constitution have been vital for the development of American civil society. Their main impact of these safeguards is that that they shield an individual against a hypothetical oppression of the state. Furthermore, they are useful for resolving urgent problems affecting the society. These are the main arguments that can be put forward.

Reference List

Ashcroft, J. & Ashcroft, J. (2014). Law For Business. Mason, OH: South-Western Publishing. Web.

Muchembled, R. (2012). A History of Violence: From the End of the Middle Ages to the Present.New York, NY: Polity. Web.

The United States Government. (1787). The Constitution of the United States. Web.

The United States Government. (1789). The Bill of Rights. Web.

Introduction

As technology improves over the years, there is an ever-increasing risk of going against accepted codes of conduct. This is mainly because improvements create loopholes that cannot be foreseen. In this respect, various bodies have responded by setting up acts and laws to deal with the issues that arise.

Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 1991

This was enacted to prohibit any unsolicited advertising by fax, automated recorded telephone messages, advertising calls to cellular telephones, and solicitation after customers have included their names on a no-call list (Twomey & Jennings, 2004). The act is mainly aimed at protecting individual privacy.

Advancements

Some of the major advancements in IT such as telemarketing and the ability to send automated or prerecorded messages to customers led to certain ethical concerns. Generally, new technology redefined the strategies, not to mention, the techniques on how marketers and industries communicated and conveyed information to clients (Twomey & Jennings, 2004).

Ethical issues

One of the major concerns was the intrusive nature of calls made by marketers or sellers. Customers often felt that their privacy was invaded whenever they received calls from companies or firms several times in a day or even at odd hours. Another ethical issue had to do with the risks of using cell phones especially to carry out telephone survey research. This is because cell phones can still be used while doing something else. This property in itself poses a great danger to a respondent especially when driving or walking as there is a great risk for potential physical harm due to distraction.

There are also a number of risks that could arise if other people are in the vicinity of the respondent when a survey call has been made. For instance, such calls could reasonably place one at risk of criminal or civil liability or could otherwise violate their privacy if the topic is sensitive. Not to mention, there is also a potential risk of damage to a respondent’s financial standing or employability (Twomey & Jennings, 2004).

Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), 2000

The act is aimed at protecting children from accessing sexually explicit, harmful, or obscene content (Sobel, 2003). Schools as well as public libraries are required to use internet filters as a condition for receiving certain federal funding such as E-rate.

Advancements

In addition to the lower costs of internet use and access to information, more people including children use the internet to play games or research on school work. This ability to access all sorts of information without restrictions as to the nature of the content exposes children to adult content that may have a negative impact on them in the absence of proper guidance. Another advancement is the creation of online communities and the rise of social networks. This has revolutionized communication since people can relate and keep in touch in ways that were not possible before (Sobel, 2003).

Ethical issues

Children were exposed to predators on the internet who were able to prey on them for various reasons. In addition, privacy was also compromised given that children are not trained on the proper use of the internet. Therefore, they are exposed to hacking and cyberbullying. The same also applies to the use of social sites where children were able to interact with strangers without proper guidance on the information they are supposed to share online.

Conclusion

The ethical issues mentioned are among the major reasons why the acts were created. They have served well in addressing the ethical issues that arose. Nonetheless, several amendments have been made to the acts, where deemed necessary.

References

Sobel, D. L. (2003). Internet filters and public libraries. Nashville, TN: First Amendment Center.

Twomey, D. P., & Jennings, M. (2004). Business law: principles for today’s commercial environment. Mason, Ohio: Thomson/South-Western West.

Introduction

The existence of weapons of mass destruction and nuclear energy is the real threat to the United States and other actors in the international system. The US has various options regarding mitigating the nuclear energy problem, including equipping the medical personnel with adequate skills and tools to respond to biological attacks. This would perhaps entail linking the activities of health care providers, hospitals and other health agencies. A different strategy involves strengthening the country’s nuclear security whereby nuclear detection architecture would be enhanced and nuclear materials would be secure. In this regard, policy makers would be expected to establish strong plans, which would allow coordination of government security activities.

Through this, the country would guarantee a capability that would radically reduce the effects of radiological or any nuclear events (Kay, 2006). Expert analysis and reliable data shows that the US would achieve its national security interests through strengthening nuclear security. This entails enhancing nuclear detection architecture and preventing the distribution of weapons of mass destruction. In this regard, the government has made some progress as far as security homeland security is concerned. Since 9/11 incident, the country has consistently fought terrorism and extremism, which are serious threats to the interests of many Americans.

Current State of Affairs

Some of the measures already in place include distracting manifold potentially lethal plots against the government of the States and its people. The Al Qaeda has not been able to access the country in order to conduct its heinous acts of terrorism due to the present of strong immigration measures. In fact, terrorists admit that the United States is the hardest target to strike in the world hence they resort to harming the American allies, particularly those in the third world. The establishment of the department of homeland security is seen as a milestone as far as mitigating terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction is concerned. The government has improved homeland defence and counterterrorism structural design through establishing the office of Director of National Intelligence, the homeland security council, and the counterterrorism centre.

Through the department of homeland security, the country’s borders are safe meaning that people are cross-examined thoroughly before they are allowed to enter the country. Before any foreigner enters the country, he or she goes through thorough screening at the border to ascertain his intentions in the United States (Binnendijk, & Kugler, 2006). Similarly, goods are checked whenever they enter the country and when they leave to ensure that no weapon of mass destruction leaves or enter the country. Through border checks and screening, the government has been able to monitor and disrupt the activities of international terrorists.

The government came to the realization that terrorism is a complex issue that needs the cooperation of various stakeholders. In this case, the government has been engaging tribal, local, state, and federal agencies in order to institute an active, multilayered approach that would resolve the issue. Through this program, the federal government provided funds to help state and local security agencies in diversifying their training. Moreover, the funds have played a critical role in acquiring equipments that would be used in emergencies. This is based on idea that stable communication equipments are usually necessary when mitigating any security threat. For any policy to work effectively, other arms of the government should always be incorporated in the making process.

The executive has been working with the congress in developing, executing, renewing laws that would help in coping with the terrorism issue, as well as the issue posed by the weapons of mass destruction (Fierke, 2007). The legislature must always be involved in policy formulation since it deals with law enactment. In 2004, the congress passed the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act and in 2007, it passed the Protect Act. The two acts of parliament have played a critical role in promoting the security of the country. The legal acts have also helped the government in implementing the recommendations of the 9/11 commission. Moreover, the acts have been of great help in implementing the recommendations of the WMD commission.

Challenges

Even though the government has been engaging various stakeholders to strengthen nuclear security, it still faces a number of challenges. One of the challenges is related to information gathering and analyzing. The government has not been able to share information effectively, something that has given terrorists an advantage whereby they capitalize on the reluctance of the government to commit their acts. For the government to prevent nuclear threats effectively, intelligence collection should be strengthened whereby government security agencies are encouraged to share information freely.

Through intelligence collection, the government would have the capability of identifying and interdicting individuals with an intention of harming the innocent citizens. In this regard, the government is encouraged to invest heavily in analytical capabilities. Terrorists take advantage of the existing freedom in information and communication. The government of the United States should secure global digital information since terrorists have been devising methods through which they can access governmental data.

As earlier noted, the government has put in place measures that would allow partnerships between the state security agencies and other stakeholders. However, the relationship has not been strong enough to deter the activities of terrorists. A cordial relationship between the private sector and the state organs at all levels of government would perhaps create an efficient, holistic, and decisive infrastructure protection plan. This plan would indeed focus on business, technology development, civil society awareness, government, and education (Viotti, 2005). The security interests of Americans would be achieved through establishing stable partnerships with the private sector. Therefore, the government should come up with a policy compelling all private investors to cooperate with the government in terms of strengthening nuclear security. In fact, research shows that some private investors and organizations understand the operations of terrorists since some partner with them.

Finally, the government has been advocating for border screening and cross-examination, yet some country’s borders are not secured. In this regard, the government needs to come to the realization that the state is not the only actor in the international. Policy makers in government must try as much as possible to consult other global partners, both state and non-state. The US government has been reluctant over years to employ technology in order to maximize port security. Experts argue that technology would probably cause delays hence affecting economic development. Research shows that technology can be employed to enhance security in major transportation routes without necessarily affecting economic development. Furthermore, the government should aim at designing strong immigration policies that would help in mitigating the major issue of illegal immigration. Whenever any level of government raises security concerns, the government should be willing to listen in order to improve nuclear security.

References

Binnendijk, H., & Kugler, R. L. (2006). Seeing the elephant: The U.S. role in global security. Washington, D.C: National Defence University Press.

Fierke, K. M. (2007). Critical approaches to international security. Cambridge, UK: Polity.

Kay, S. (2006). Global security in the twenty-first century: The quest for power and the search for peace. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield.

Viotti, P. R. (2005). American foreign policy and national security: A documentary record. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

A contract is a binding agreement between two parties. The agreement usually lays down the terms and conditions which must be obeyed by both parties. One could be sued if they fail to observe the terms of a particular contract which they are privy to. For a contract to be binding it has to contain various elements including capacity to contract, offer, acceptance, consideration, legality and intention (Barnett, 2003). These elements are discussed in details in this article.

Capacity to contract

This refers to the ability of a party to enter into a binding contract. Those allowed to form binding agreements with other parties are said to have the capacity to contract while those not allowed to enter the contracts are said not to be in a capacity to contract. Commonly most laws do not allow minors, people of unsound mind and partnerships to contract.

A minor is a person defined by the laws of a given land as a person who has not yet attained a particular age. Most laws consider the age of eighteen years and those below do not have the capacity to enter into a contract. Any contracts entered by such a person are not binding unless exceptions exist in this case and they are usually explained by the laws of a given land (Koffman, 2007).

A person of unsound mind is not allowed to contract as they are not in a position to make decisions. It must be ascertained beyond reasonable doubt by a qualified medic that the particular person who is claimed to be of unsound mind is actually in that state. A partnership is not a legal person and can therefore not enter into contracts. Both natural persons and legal persons like companies have the capacity to contract.

Offer

An offer is an essential element of a contract. In almost all contracts one party states the terms to be obeyed by the other party. For instance, one may want to sell a given commodity at a given price within a given duration to a given class of people. Such terms constitute an offer and they must be obeyed in full if one is to accept that offer to make a binding contract. In our example above only the people who are from the mentioned class can take up that offer and they must fulfill all the other terms (Barnett, 2003).

However, one must be keen enough to differentiate between invitation to treat and an offer. Usually advertisements and display of goods in a shop with their prices do not constitute offers but simple invitations to treat. A person deciding to buy goods following a display or an advertisement is the one who offers and the owner of the goods may either accept the offer in full or reject it.

Acceptance

The existence of an accepted offer from the other party must exist for a contract to take place. Acceptance can be defined as the willingness of a party to take up the terms of a given offer in full. As mentioned before for an acceptance to be considered valid one must accept all the terms mentioned in the offer. Failure to accept all those terms results in a counter offer. Counter offer can be looked at as another offer and if accepted also brings to existence a different contract.

There are various rules that must be obeyed for an acceptance to be considered valid. For instance, in most laws a valid acceptance must be properly communicated to the party offering the contract from the other party willing to accept. What constitutes proper communication is also defined by the laws involved. Another important aspect that must be taken into consideration to define an acceptance as valid is duration.

In most cases, the person who offers states the time limit within which an offer remains valid. In situations where the time limit is not stated in the terms then reasonable time is fixed. What is to be considered as reasonable time varies from one situation to another and it may be determined by the courts in relation to the existing laws of the land. If an offer is made to a particular person or class of people, a party that does not fall into the mentioned class cannot accept such an offer. There are other rules governing valid acceptance of an offer and they may vary from one country to another (McKendrick, 2005).

Consideration

This is the price the other party is willing to pay on a contract. Also, for a contract to be a valid between two parties, one of them must accept the terms offered by the other. The party accepting the offer must be willing to sacrifice something to make the contract valid. This sacrifice is what is considered as consideration. A contract consideration has its own elements that make it valid. For instance, past consideration is usually not good consideration and it cannot be considered as valid consideration when contracting between the parties since its timeline may be already expired.

Legality

Legality refers to the state of an act to be considered valid and not to be amounting to a criminal offense in a particular country in relations to its laws. Whenever a contract is brought into existence it must be within the stipulated laws protected under the constitution. Thus, one cannot enter a contract with another person to supply a good that is prohibited in a particular place. An example of these goods is drugs that are banned in most countries as well as other contraband goods. Such contracts are not binding and cannot lead to legal obligations if one fails to uphold the stated terms since they do not have a legal backing and protection (McKendrick, 2005).

Intention

The intention of the parties to enter a contract is also a key element to make a valid contract. One cannot be assumed to have entered a contract if they are forced to sign given documents that constitute an offer. It is expected that to enter a contract both parties must be willing and none should be coerced to enter a contract. Use of unnecessary force or intimidation to form a contract renders the contract invalid and such contracts are not enforceable as they do not exist in the first place (Koffman, 2007).

The terms stated and explained above must be fulfilled for a contract to be valid. A contract that does not take into consideration the essential elements explained above is not enforceable and has no legal consequences if one fails to go by the stated terms. In case of a valid contract if one fails to uphold the terms of the contract then they can be sued for breach of contract.

References

Barnett, R. (2003). Contracts. Richland Hills, TX: Aspen Publisher.

Koffman, M. (2007). The Law of Contract. London, UK: Oxford University Press.

McKendrick, E. (2005). Contract Law – Text, Cases and Materials. London, UK: Oxford University Press.

Introduction

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is one of the recent medical care policies in the United States. PPACA is also popularly referred to as Obamacare. It is one of the most comprehensive health care reforms in the USA. The policy, if enacted fully will see most average and low income earning Americans get affordable medical care. While the bill is advantageous to the poor citizens, the apparent state control of the bill brought a lot of controversies. First the bill mandates all states to enact the legislation by imposing heavy fines on states that fail to implement the law. Secondly the bill imposes that individuals earning should purchase a health insurance policy. These issues are seen by critics as abuse of federal power and are against the constitutional framework. Proponents of the bill however argue that without strict government control, over 45 million US citizens would remain without a health care system.

Thesis statement: The federal government should allow states to develop innovative health care solutions to suit their local situations as well as preserve state flexibility and independence.

Obamacare Bill History

Medicaid expansion which is one of the key issues in the Obamacare bill was initially enacted in 1965. The programs has expanded to cover over 60 million Americans to date. In this program, the national government provides federal funding to states that in turn develop social programs to assist low income earners. Medicaid accounts 43% of the total expenditure of the federal government to individual states. The states on the other hand are allowed to introduce flexibilities but must also meet the minimum requirement by federal government. States determine the least and highest benefits, methods of delivering the health care and the amount paid to the providers. Despite the huge grants given by the federal government, Medicaid still remains the largest expense for individual states.

The Obamacare bill sought to provide adequate health care services to over 45 million Americans. The main incentives of this policy include:

• To expand Medicaid to poor Americans
• To compel individuals to purchase health insurance
• To compel states to expand their Medicaid programs
• To compel states to initiate insurance exchange programs

Tensions between the Federal Government and States

In the US, federalism is a crucial feature in the provision of health care services. Federalism is the constitutional method of dividing power, authority and responsibility between the national government and states (Ryan, 2012). In the US, the health care roles are divided among between the national government and individual states. Medicaid implementation has brought increased the federalism controversies between the states and national government. The main questions lie on who should decide the policies adopted at the state level.

In the bill, the federal government sought to compel states into accepting the legislation or face severe consequences. The federal government imposed that states adopting Obamacare would receive large benefits in form of funding while those that did not would not receive the normal funding of Medicaid. The bill also stipulated that individuals earning should be compelled to purchase health insurance. Individual states on the other hand indicated that this was a direct abuse of power and states should have the flexibility and liberty of developing their own health care solutions. Also, citizens should choose whether or not to purchase heath care insurance.

The government justification for strict control was based on the fact that, absence of strict federal laws, mandated to all the states would mean uneven medical coverage and more so to the poor American citizens. This resulted to tensions between the federal government and local states as well as individuals.

Negative Impacts of Federal Regulations of Obamacare (Cons)

First and foremost, for the policy to be effective, the commitment of the federal government and the respective states is necessary. Both the national government and individual states should participate in the formulation and implementation of these programs. As such, the national government should formulate policies with significant flexibilities so as to allow states to develop innovative solutions around a particular policy.

By vesting a lot of power on the federal government, local states will have no option but to follow policies developed by the government. This would reduce the powers and responsibilities of the state government. This creates a constitutional crisis on the function and limits of the federal and state governments. Thus, individual states should be allowed to develop and regulate their health insurance policies (Gais, 2010).

If the central government limits the state government roles, they would merely be implementers of the government policies. This would transform their roles from governance to administrators. That is, state governments would only implement what the government proposes.

In the court ruling on constrains imposed on Obamacare policy which sought to withdraw the current Medicaid funding for states that did not comply with the new legislation, the court argued that this was a direct abuse of federal power (Landers,2012). Thus, from a legal perspective, the federal government overstepped its mandate.

Another controversial aspect is the refusal by some states to implement insurance exchange programs as stipulated in the bill. The federal government hinted that it would step in and develop these exchange schemes for the state. If this happens, the federal government would have excised greater power and control over individual. This is against the constitutional framework of the US.

The issues of increase in federal power can also be seen in the light of few individuals wanting to shape American government. Strict control would mean that those in power would impose policies to improve their performance at the expense of the state and its citizens.

Whereas the federal government is the policy maker, individual states oversee the implementation of these policies. Forcing states to make decisions based on incentives and penalties is against the constitutional framework of the country.

Another controversial issue is the compulsory health insurance imposed by the bill. The bill mandates that individuals earning above 138% of the federal poverty level must purchase a health insurance policy. Individuals should be given the liberty of choosing whether to purchase the policy or not.

Different states in the US have varying demographic, financials and political issues and hence one policy for all the states is impractical. Imposing a single policy on these states is difficult and impractical. The states should therefore be given the mandate to innovate and develop solutions that best suits their medical needs.

Positive impacts of federalism in the bill (Pros)

The main argument for strict federal government control lies in provision of health insurance to over 40 million poor Americans. Absence of strict federal control would leave poor individuals without adequate health care. However, if the government imposes strict control, most states and individuals will have to comply. Whereas the government guarantees health care for poor Americans in the Medicare expansion programs, the liberty of individuals and states should not be compromised. The right to liberty should be guaranteed and the government should not interfere with it irrespective of the gains to be achieved (Jacobs & Skocpol, 2011). Thus this policy is not consistent with the rule of law and the US constitutional framework.

From the policy supporter’s view, a small increase in federal power for the sake of improving health does not go against the constitution. However, abusing power should not be condoned either for the right and wrong reasons.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this paper evaluated the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) bill in terms of federalism and the US constitutional framework. The implementation of the bill resulted to huge controversy as it mandated individuals to adopt health insurance and states to expand Medicaid and insurance exchange programs. From the legal perspective, mandating states to expand their Medicaid or individuals to buy health insurance is against the constitutional framework and an excessive use of federal power. Though the central government has power to develop policies, it cannot impose them on individuals and states as this would compromise on their liberty. States and individuals should be free to choose. The federal government should essentially develop policy and provide incentives to encourage the adoption of the new policy. There should be an element of flexibility in the policy allowing states to modernize and manage their health care problems. The government should also not mandate individuals to purchase health insurance policies.

References

Gais, L.T. (2010). Federalism During the Obama Administration. Web.

Jacobs, R., & Skocpol, T. (2011). Health Care Reform and American Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know. New York: Oxford University Press.

Landers, R. (2012). The Denouement of the Supreme Court’s ACA Drama. New England Journal of Medicine, 367( 3),198-199.

Ryan, E. (2012). Obamacare and Federalism’s Tug of War Within. Web.