The goal within the United States government is to treat each individual as an equal citizen. Unfortunately, through the inadequate practice of public policies people have been treated unequal because of natural conditions and the countries social environment. In health policy, the two concepts that cause unequal treatment are health disparities and health differences. Health disparities are resulted from social factors that are avoidable and unjust. For example, saying ovarian cancer death rates are higher because men have better research on prostate cancer (Smith, 2016). “The extent and nature of health disparities changes over the life course” (Adler, 2008, p. 241). Health differences are inherently biological being completely natural and …show more content…
No citizen shale ever be ignored no matter their race, state of health, or class. In the US “barriers generally stem from forces within the organizational environment of the health care delivery system or within the broader social system itself” (Barr, 2011, p. 273). This is why health policy scholars need to study health disparities so that equal care can ultimately be reached. Currently some disparities that are obvious in society are unequal dispersion and quality of care between racial groups, genders, and those with low middle class income. The health care system needs to be fixed and in order for that to happen health scholars must study better procedures so that the best possible outcome can be reached for the American …show more content…
The ACA expanded Medicare/ Medicaid, strengthened employer based care, and included an individual mandate. Before the ACA there were 32 million people uninsured and “approximately half, or 16 million, will gain coverage through an expansion of Medicaid” (Barr, 2011, p. 292). To improve the cost of care the ACA required employers with more the 50 employees to offer plans and individuals would have to purchase plans from the government. “ACA does not address directly the issue of disparities in access of care based on a patient’s race or ethnicity, it does impose on providers the responsibility for collecting data on the race or ethnicity, primary language, disability status, and similar demographic characteristics of patients cared for” (Barr, 2011, p. 293). The ACA strives to give health coverage to all but the power still lies in the private sector. Overall, the healthcare system in the United States is still broken because not everyone is insured and disparities are still evident. More policy evolution is required if the US is going to be a nation state that has completely equal citizens. Health scholars must research more so that they can influence what happens in health policy. I believe the patient’s opinion needs to be included so the system
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Show MoreThe public needs to address racial disparities in health which is achievable by changing policy addressing the major components of socioeconomic status (income, education, and occupation) as well as the pathways by which these affect health. To modify these risk factors, one needs to look even further to consider the factors. Socioeconomic status is a key underlying factor. Several components need to be identified to offer more options for those working on policy making. Because the issue is so big, I believe that not a single policy can eliminate health disparities in the United States. One possible pathway can be education, like the campaign to decrease tobacco usage, which is still a big problem, but the health issue has decreased in severity. The other pathway can be by addressing the income, by giving low-income individuals the same quality of care as an individual who has a high
One of the most controversial topics in the United States in recent years has been the route which should be undertaken in overhauling the healthcare system for the millions of Americans who are currently uninsured. It is important to note that the goal of the Affordable Care Act is to make healthcare affordable; it provides low-cost, government-subsidized insurance options through the State Health Insurance Marketplace (Amadeo 1). Our current president, Barack Obama, made it one of his goals to bring healthcare to all Americans through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. This plan, which has been termed “Obamacare”, has come under scrutiny from many Americans, but has also received a large amount of support in turn for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons include a decrease in insurance discrimination on the basis of health or gender and affordable healthcare coverage for the millions of uninsured. The opposition to this act has cited increased costs and debt accumulation, a reduction in employer healthcare coverage options, as well as a penalization of those already using private healthcare insurance.
Although we’ve made substantial progress in attempts to eliminate discrimination, poverty today still exists. Huge advancements have been made for medical professionals to pay close attention to patients’ rights. Health inequality is still believed to be existent today through disparities in race, gender, income, education and geography. Those who are poor or live below the poverty line receive substandard care: less likely to get the same care as someone with health insurance and access to medical professionals and clinics is limited. For Henrietta the care she received was subpar as she had little say in what was done as well as the division between whites and
The United States (U.S.) has a health care system that is much different than any other health care system in the world (Nies & McEwen, 2015). It is frequently recognized as one with most recent technological inventions, but at the same time is often criticized for being overly expensive (Nies & McEwen, 2015). In 2010, President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) (U. S. Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.) This plan was implemented in an attempt to make preventative care more affordable and accessible for all uninsured Americans (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.). Under the law, the new Patient’s Bill of Rights gives consumers the power to be in charge of their health care choices. (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.).
Healthcare disparities are when there are inequalities or differences of the conditions of health and the quality of care that is received among specific groups of people such as African Americans, Caucasians, Asians, or Hispanics. Not only does it occur between racial and ethnic groups, health disparities can happen between males and females as well. Minorities have the worst healthcare outcomes, higher death rates, and are more prone to terminal diseases. For African American men and women, some of the most common health disparities are diabetes, cancer, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and HIV infections. Some factors that can contribute to disparities are healthcare access, transportation, specialist referrals, and non-effective communication with patients. There is also much racism that still occurs today, which can be another reason African Americans may be mistreated with their healthcare. “Although both black and white patients tended not to endorse the existence of racism in the medical system, African Americans patients were more likely to perceive racism” (Laveist, Nickerson, Bowie, 2000). Over the years, the health care system has made improvements but some Americans, such as African Americans, are still being treating unequally when wanting the same care they desire as everyone else.
The sociological analysis for why these inequalities in health and health care happen are mainly because of racism that has happened throughout society across the United States. The racial differences between black and white was a big deal in the past for the U.S. and this brought massive attention whether a person should be treated like this because of their skin. Gender in society plays an important role in identifying social status and therefore, has more increased health care to be implemented within society. Next, Race/Ethnicity is the category in how we define ourselves within society (White, Black, American Indian, Pacific Islander, etc.). This inequality is traces all the way back to disease, and forms of social norms that fail to maintain
Seeking to position lower socioeconomic status above racial/ethnic biases or vice versa is irresponsible to the goal of eliminating healthcare delivery differences at large. Both these are realities of a group of people who are not receiving the same level of care from the healthcare professionals although they exist within one of the most resource rich countries in the world, the United States. According to House & Williams (2000), “racism restricts and truncates socioeconomic attainment” (page, 106). This alone will hinder good health and spur on disparities as racism reduces the level of education and income as well as the prospect of better jobs. Blacksher (2008) cites the nation’s institutionalized racism as one of the leading factors
In recent discussions of health care disparities, a controversial issue has been whether racism is the cause of health care disparities or not. On one hand, some argue that racism is a serious problem in the health care system. From this perspective, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) states that there is a big gap between the health care quality received by minorities, and the quality of health care received by non-minorities, and the reason is due to racism. On the other hand, however, others argue that health care disparities are not due to racism. In the words of Sally Satel, one of this view’s main proponents, “White and black patients, on average don’t even visit the same population of physicians” (Satel 1), hence this reduces the chances of racism being the cause of health care disparities. According to this view, racism is not a serious problem in the health care system. In sum, then, the issue is whether racism is a major cause of health care disparities as the Institute of Medicine argues or racism is not really an issue in the health care system as suggested by Sally Satel.
Racial and ethnic disparities in behavior health care are not a new phenomenon. According to researchers’ disparities in health services use and outcomes have contributed to difference in access to care. Evidence showed that compare to the majority, African American and the Latino they have the lowest income, less education, lower rates of private insurance coverage. There are possibilities that explain this phenomenon: racial bias on the part of the door, patient preferences, and poor communication.
Ever since the long and controversial political and legislative process of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that was enacted in 2010, it has created numerous opportunities to make health care accessible, affordable, and higher quality for all. Importantly, the ACA has improved the health care system regards into reducing health disparities in recent years. For the remainder of this research paper we will have further information to what the ACA is, health disparities that exist, improvements from the ACA, and the status and future of the act.
The facts bear out the conclusion that the way healthcare in this country is distributed is flawed. It causes us to lose money, productivity, and unjustly leaves too many people struggling for what Thomas Jefferson realized was fundamental. Among industrialized countries, America holds the unique position of not having any form of universal health care. This should lead Americans to ask why the health of its citizens is “less equal” than the health of a European.
I did not know the true extent of the prejudice and discrimination those low-income individuals and other vulnerable populations dealt with. I was shocked to see the discriminative behavior reach health professionals and be reinforced by the healthcare system. Patients can be denied treatment at a “premier” hospital for reasons like not having a green card, or being poor, and/or uninsured. If a patient was deemed unqualified to receive treatment at the premier hospital, they got transferred to a free hospital such as Cook County Hospital. This unethical treatment didn’t exclude patients in critical conditions; a person with serious bullet wounds can be turned down on the
I situated my research paper within the existing literature, including resources used in my Gender and Women Studies 130AC course at UC Berkeley and other scholarly sources on related topics. I aimed to concisely discuss and tie together the concepts of health (what is it and who is responsible to maintain it) with public policy (the ACA addressing health disparities), though admittedly 9 pages is far too short to adequately assess such a complex matter. I reviewed the work of Lock and Farmer to better understand the concepts of health and health disparity (Sherwin, 1988) (Farmer, 2010) (Bailey et al. 2017) as well as the work of Dworkin for the concept of intersectionality (Dworkin, 2005). I also surveyed various resources to further learn
However there are countless Americans who are denied access to healthcare and the medical preventative measures which decrease mortality rates. “On average, the poor and older adults require more medical attention than the general population; indeed “the prevalence” of many chronic conditions is directly related to age and inversely related to financial status” (pg. 278). Also race, and gender have a major role in the health benefits an individual is given. “Gender is also an important factor in health outcomes. For example, men are 50 percent more likely than women to die of heart disease or cancer but there is very little difference in deaths from strokes or cerebrovascular disease” (pg. 278).
Simply stated by the IOM, the “purpose of the health system is to continually reduce the burden of illness, injury, and disability, and to improve the health and functioning of the people of the United States.” The focus of this Aim is that these benefits of the healthcare system should be available to all. In my research on this particular aim, I was surprised to find that the Institute for Healthcare Improvement considers this aim, one of the most painful weaknesses of the health care system is its failure to provide care of equal quality to everyone, regardless of race, age, gender, ethnicity, income, geographic location, or any other demographic detail. That’s why equity is one of the “Aims for Improvement” in the Institute of Medicine’s 2001 report, Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century, which describes the immense divide between what we know to be good health care and the health care that people actually