National and universal health care is not only a worldwide matter, but also an even bigger topic in the United States. Why? Because America does not yet support and fund a national single payer health care system for its citizens. Many brilliant presidents, persons without insurance, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have addressed this issue. Being one of the few industrialized nations that doesn’t have national health care puts the United States farther behind many satisfied countries justly and socially.
The history of health care and its disputes goes all the way back to the 1900’s. A few brilliant political leaders have tried providing our country with the decency of having national health care but weren’t able to succeed. Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Clinton and Obama have all tried to pass health care reforms, and yes, two of those presidents were Republican. Although each figure’s plan varied from another one, they still portrayed the same basic ideas and goals. They progressed towards developing a health care plan that would cover everyone, but most importantly, the lower income families.
A large benefit of having a universal health care system is that one can receive universal coverage at a lower cost than is given by larger funding methods. Canada has universal coverage, excellent health outcomes, minimal paperwork, and a great public satisfaction, although coverage or reimbursement decisions do tend to become political.
For decades there have always been opposing views towards having universal health care. It has been argued that universal health care will be too expensive and bankrupt America. This topic is relevant to every single citizen of the United States that has ever be...
... middle of paper ...
...3. Print.
Emanuel, Ezekiel. "What Are the Health Care Cost Savings?" JAMA 307.1 (2012): 39-40. Print.
McDonough, John E. Inside National Health Reform. Berkeley: University of California, 2011. Print.
Moyers, Bill, and Wendell Potter, prods. "Wendell Potter and the Health Insurance Industry." Bill Moyers Journal. PBS. New York, New York, 31 July 2009. Television.
Navarro, Vincente. "Chapter 5/A Government-Run Health Care System Is Best." The Health Crisis: Opposing Viewpoints. By Bonnie Szumski. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven, 1989. Print.
Sigerist, Henry E. "Chapter 2/Socialized Medicine." National Health Care; Issues and Problems in Socialized Medicine. By Ray H. Elling. Chicago: Aldine-Atherton, 1971. Print.
Starfield, Barbara, MD. "Is US Health Really the Best in the World? Barbara Starfield, MD, MPH." Hear The Refusers. The Refusers, 26 July 2000. Web. 12 May 2014.
"The Pros and Cons of ObamaCare." UPMC. N.p., 6 Nov 2013. Web. 14 Apr 2014.
“Socialized Medicine.” The term throws shivers through the American population. For some this brings great joy. They see a world where they can visit a doctor and get the medicine they need for little or no cost. Others, however, see a world of rationed care and long waits for procedures. “Socialism” is the term that bothers. It sticks deep in the American psyche, conjuring up images from the Russian Revolution and George Orwell’s Animal Farm. In Animal Farm, the animals experience a very oppressive leader, and it represents the cruelty of the Stalin Regime. Some wonder where they might fall in the hierarchy of animals that Orwell laid out. In the current healthcare system “all animals are equal but some are more equal than others”. (Orwell) America is built on the assumption that “all men are created equal” but there is a hot debate about how that equal access to healthcare should look. Access to healthcare is a basic human right that provides economic benefits and makes for a more fair and just society.
During the study of various reforms that were proposed and denied, both the GOP and Democrats attempted to find a balance that would guarantee the success of their proposals. Years of research, growing ideologies, political views and disregard for the country's constitution sparked an array of alternatives to solve the country's healthcare spending. The expenditure of US healthcare dollars was mostly due to hospital reimbursements, which constitute to 30% (Longest & Darr, 2008). During the research for alternatives, the gr...
Hicks, L. (2012). The Economics of Health and Medical Care (6th Ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
America is known for democracy, freedom, and the American Dream. American citizens have the right to free speech, free press, the right to bear arms, and the right to religious freedom to name a few. The Declaration of Independence states that American citizens have the rights including “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” America promises equality and freedom and the protection of their rights as outlined in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. But with all the rights and freedoms that American citizens enjoy, there is one particular area where the United States seems to be lacking. That area is health care. The United States is the only industrialized nation that doesn’t have some form of legal recognition of a right to health care (Yamin 1157). Health care reform in the United States has become a major controversy for politicians, health care professionals, businesses, and citizens. Those in opposition to reform claim that health care is not a human right, therefore the government should not be involved. Supporters of reform believe that health care is most definitely a human right and should be available to everyone in the United States instead of only those who can afford it, and that it is the government’s responsibility to uphold that right.
In recent years, the number of Americans who are uninsured has reached over 45 million citizens, with millions more who only have the very basic of insurance, effectively under insured. With the growing budget cuts to medicaid and the decreasing amount of employers cutting back on their health insurance options, more and more americans are put into positions with poor health care or no access to it at all. At the heart of the issue stems two roots, one concerning the morality of universal health care and the other concerning the economic effects. Many believe that health care reform at a national level is impossible or impractical, and so for too long now our citizens have stood by as our flawed health-care system has transformed into an unfixable mess. The good that universal healthcare would bring to our nation far outweighs the bad, however, so, sooner rather than later, it is important for us to strive towards a society where all people have access to healthcare.
Despite the established health care facilities in the United States, most citizens do not have access to proper medical care. We must appreciate from the very onset that a healthy and strong nation must have a proper health care system. Such a health system should be available and affordable to all. The cost of health services is high. In fact, the ...
Niles, N. J. (2011). Basics of the U.S. health care system. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.
Berman, M. L. (2011). From Health Care Reform to Public Health Reform. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 39(3), 328-339. doi:10.1111/j.1748-720X.2011.00603.x
While most countries around the world have some form of universal national health care system, the United States, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, does not. There are much more benefits to the U.S. adopting a dorm of national health care system than to keep its current system, which has proved to be unnecessarily expensive, complicated, and overall inefficient.
Reese, Philip. Public Agenda Foundation. The Health Care Crisis: Containing Costs, Expanding Coverage. New York: McGraw, 2002.
The U.S. healthcare system is very complex in structure hence it can be appraised with diverse perspectives. From one viewpoint it is described as the most unparalleled health care system in the world, what with the cutting-edge medical technology, the high quality human resources, and the constantly-modernized facilities that are symbolic of the system. This is in addition to the proliferation of innovations aimed at increasing life expectancy and enhancing the quality of life as well as diagnostic and treatment options. At the other extreme are the fair criticisms of the system as being fragmented, inefficient and costly. What are the problems with the U.S. healthcare system? These are the questions this opinion paper tries to propound.
The Web. The Web. 31 Mar. 2014. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. Genetics And The Moral Mission Of Health Insurance. Hastings Center Report 22.6 (1992): 12.
The US health system has both considerable strengths and notable weaknesses. With a large and well-trained health workforce, access to a wide range of high-quality medical specialists as well as secondary and tertiary institutions, patient outcomes are among the best in the world. But the US also suffers from incomplete coverage of its population, and health expenditure levels per person far exceed all other countries. Poor measures on many objective and subjective indicators of quality and outcomes plague the US health care system. In addition, an unequal distribution of resources across the country and among different population groups results in poor access to care for many citizens. Efforts to provide comprehensive, national health insurance in the United States go back to the Great Depression, and nearly every president since Harry S. Truman has proposed some form of national health insurance.
The cost of US health care has been steadily increasing for many years causing many Americans to face difficult choices between health care and other priorities in their lives. Health economists are bringing to light the tradeoffs which must be considered in every healthcare decision (Getzen, 2013, p. 427). Therefore, efforts must be made to incite change which constrains the cost of health care without creating adverse health consequences. As the medical field becomes more business oriented, there will be more of a shift in focus toward the costs and benefits, which will make medicine more like the rest of the economy (Getzen, 2013, p. 439).