Health care is an important issue to all governments. Yet, every government takes a different approach to this issue. Some governments like the United States prefer a more capitalistic approach and allow citizens to pick their own health care insurance plans. Other Scandinavian and European countries have moved towards universal health care systems. With the novelty of these universal healthcare policies, the research is beginning to be published about the effectiveness of universal healthcare. Current literature shows that while the universal health care systems work, they do not promote equity. In order to discuss health care systems accurately, there must be a definition of the different types of health care. According to T.R. Reid in his The research was done by Leah S. Steele, Richard H. Glazier, and Elizabeth Lin in an attempt to discover if there was a measurable difference of health care utilization, specifically mental health care utilization, between different socioeconomic groups. Similar to the other studies they found, “Marked socioeconomic disparities were found in the use of care from a psychiatrist. Unlimited coverage of physician-provided mental health care is insufficient to fairly distribute services to those most in need” (Steele et al. 317). The fact that different socioeconomic income levels utilize universal health care to different levels is the common theme between all of these studies. While everyone will get universal health care coverage, the use is not equal among all groups of “Universal health care no guarantee of equity: Comparison of socioeconomic inequalities in the receipt of coronary procedures in patients with acute myocardial infarction and angina” by Rosemary J. Korda, Mark S. Clements, and Chris W. Kelman proves that the system tends to favor the socioeconomically advantaged section of the population. They found that, “Australia's universal health care system does not guarantee equity in the receipt of high technology health care for patients with ischemic heart disease” (Korda et al. 1). Once again, the studies prove that universal health insurance does not necessarily mean equity for all
Mental health care disparities can be rooted in inequalities in access to good providers, differences in insurance coverage, or discrimination by health professionals in the clinical encounter (McGuire & Miranda, 2008). Surely, those who are affected by these disparities are minorities Blacks and Latinos compare to Whites. Due to higher rates of poverty and poor health among United States minorities compared with whites. Moreover, the fact that poverty and poor health are
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.
According to editorial one, universal health care is a right that every American should be able to obtain. The author provides the scenario that insurance companies reject people with preexisting conditions and that people typically wait to receive health care until it's too much of a problem due to the extreme costs. Both of these scenarios are common among Americans so the author uses those situations to appeal to the readers' emotions. Editorial one also includes logical evidence that America could follow Canada's and Europe's universal health care systems because both of those nations are excelling in it.
Mental healthcare has a long and murky past in the United States. In the early 1900s, patients could live in institutions for many years. The treatments and conditions were, at times, inhumane. Legislation in the 1980s and 1990s created programs to protect this vulnerable population from abuse and discrimination. In the last 20 years, mental health advocacy groups and legislators have made gains in bringing attention to the disparity between physical and mental health programs. However, diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses continues to be less than optimal. Mental health disparities continue to exist in all areas of the world.
The relationship between mental health and poverty can prove to be complicated at times because of an overwhelmingly large number of outside
Universal health care refers to any system of health care managed by the government. The health care system may cover different programs including government run hospitals and health organizations and programs targeted at providing health care. Many developed countries such as Canada and United Kingdom have embraced universal health care with the United States being the only exception. The present U.S health care system has often been considered inefficient in terms of cost control as millions of Americans remain uncovered. This has made it the subject of a heated debate characterized by people who argue that the country requires a kind of socialized system that will permit increased government participation. Others have tended to support privatized health care, or a combined model of private and universal health care that will permit private companies to offer health care for a specific fee. Universal healthcare has numerous advantages that remain hidden from society. First, the federal government can apply economies of scale in managing health facilities which would reduce health care expenses. Second, all unnecessary expenses would be eliminated by requiring all states to bring together all the insurance companies into a single entity whose mandate would be to provide health insurance to all people. Lastly, increased government participation will guarantee quality care, improve access to medical services and address critical problems relating to market failure.
Does every citizen have the right to have access to basic health care in the wealthiest country of the world? The current healthcare system in America has many inequalities in the access, quality, and cost of healthcare among different economic groups of people. In addition, it would be more beneficial to give citizens access to preventative care that could avoid health issues by addressing them early on, while they are still manageable. Siegfried Karsten (1995), professor of economics at West Georgia College, brings up a valid argument in the American Journal of Economics and Sociology when he questions whether “society really can afford not to cover all people…..is it economically and politically rational to continue to have millions of people develop serious health problems, at great costs to society……because they are financially unable to obtain the necessary medical care when it does them the most good?” (p.138). The cost of healthcare in America is a deterrent to lower income groups who cannot afford insurance, or even if they have insurance, hesitate to seek treatment due to deductibles and copays.
Universal healthcare: a term feared by many politicians due to the communist connotation, but is it really all that bad? Over 58 countries have some sort of universal health coverage, such as England and France which have single payer healthcare meaning the government provides insurance for all citizens and pays for all healthcare expenses. The United States of America has insurance mandated healthcare meaning the government requires all citizens to purchase insurance, usually provided through their jobs. In America, over 45 million people are uninsured, 20,000 of which will die by the end of the year compared to England or Frances were all residents, legal or not, are covered.
If the United States had unlimited funds, the appropriate response to such a high number of mentally ill Americans should naturally be to provide universal coverage that doesn’t discriminate between healthcare and mental healthcare. The United States doesn’t have unlimited funds to provide universal healthcare at this point, but the country does have the ability to stop coverage discrimination. A quarter of the 15.7 million Americans who received mental health care listed themselves as the main payer for the services, according to one survey that looked at those services from 2005 to 2009. 3 Separate research from the same agency found 45 percent of those not receiving mental health care listing cost as a barrier.3 President Obama and the advisors who helped construct The Affordable Care Act recognized the problem that confronts the mentally ill. Mental healthcare had to be more affordable and different measures had to be taken to help patients recover. Although The Affordable Care Act doesn’t provide mentally ill patients will universal coverage, the act has made substantial changes to the options available to them.
Mental health disparities, “the power imbalances that impact practices influencing access, quality, and outcomes of behavioral health care, or a significant disparity in the overall rate of disease incidence, prevalence, morbidity, mortality, or survival rate in a specific group of people defined along racial and ethnic lines, as compared with the general population” (Safran, 2011). Although there are many mental health care dipartites, I’m going to focus on the impact of poverty and lack of attention given to mental health. By advocating for a prevention, promotion, and intervention related to mental health, will aid in minimizing mental health disparities. Not only is it important to advocate on a macro level, but it is important to educate
Healthcare professionals want only to provide the best care and comfort for their patients. In today’s world, advances in healthcare and medicine have made their task of doing so much easier, allowing previously lethal diseases to be diagnosed and treated with proficiency and speed. A majority of people in the United States have health insurance and enjoy the luxury of convenient, easy to access health care services, with annual checkups, preventative care, and their own personal doctor ready to diagnose and provide treatment for even the most trivial of symptoms. Many of these people could not imagine living a day without the assurance that, when needed, medical care would not be available to themselves and their loved ones. However, millions of American citizens currently live under these unimaginable conditions, going day to day without the security of frequent checkups, prescription medicine, or preventative medicines that could prevent future complications in their health. Now with the rising unemployment rates due to the current global recession, even more Americans are becoming uninsured, and the flaws in the United States’ current healthcare system are being exposed. In order to amend these flaws, some are looking to make small changes to fix the current healthcare system, while others look to make sweeping changes and remodel the system completely, favoring a more socialized, universal type of healthcare system. Although it is certain that change is needed, universal healthcare is not the miracle cure that will solve the systems current ailments. Universal healthcare should not be allowed to take form in America as it is a menace to the capitalist principle of a free market, threatens to put a stranglehold on for-...
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and the well-being of oneself and one family, including…medical care” (Should All Americans Have the Right to Health Care). It’s the government’s duty to protect the life of all of its citizens; Universal health care is a step that needs to be taken to protect these lives. Some people argue that providing access to health care will be ineffective and drive up the cost. The government should provide access to universal health care because it protects health, it will lower the cost, and it eliminates discrimination from the health care system.
There are many things wrong with the current healthcare system in America. When thinking of taking on a universal healthcare plan, there are many things one must consider. Who would be eligible for it? How would it affect those who already have insurance, and how would it financially affect the economy? It is quite obvious that people below poverty level have access to public health programs, such as Medicaid. What needs to be taken into consideration is that people who are poor, barely "above" "poverty”, “middleclass" "and" those who do not have health insurance are highly "affected" (Rashford 7). Many people suffer on various levels due to inadequate access to appropriate healthcare. The "number" of people who are "uninsured" in America is not decreasing; in fact, it is growing continually (Rashford 5). “According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2004), between 2000 and 2003, the number of Americans without health insurance rose from 1.4 million to an astonishing 45 million” (Rashford 5). It is my assumption that many Americans health is declining with the risk of dying early due to lack of insurance or no coverage at all. I believe a well budgeted universal healthcare plan is necessary to solve this critical issue.
Like many college students I have to pinch pennies to make it through school. Every last penny counts when budgeting my monetary supply. As a result of this I have found that I do not have enough to spare to pay for health insurance. Unlike most college students I am over the age of 23 and thus not covered by my parents insurance. Since I am only employed part time I am also not able to obtain it from work. This puts me in the company of the more than 42 million Americans who do not have health insurance. It is past time that the United States join the rest of the industrialized countries that have already decided to provide their citizens with health care. I believe a single payer health care system is necessary. A national health care system would provide a number of benefits. To begin with, it would cut the overall costs of health care. Secondly it would actually decrease bureaucracy by removing the many layers of insurance paper work patients and physicians are forced to go through in our current system. Finally it would increase life expectancy by allowing more money conscious Americans to receive adequate prevention instead of waiting until an illness becomes worse. All of these reasons point towards a national health care program as being the solution we need. Some opponents of single payer sytems, mostly financed by insurance companies that stand to lose billions from such a plan, point to some of the other countries that have enacted such plans as an advisory against our following suit. However they fail to take into account some of the methods unique to those countries and overstate some of the problems while ignoring our own.
Universal Healthcare by definition means healthcare for all. That would also mean that an insured persons rates would not be increased to cover the uninsured. Universal Healthcare is moral and just obligation. By promoting the health of our citizens we then promote our infrastructure as well.