Health Care Reform in the United States

1218 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Cons of universal health care

Health Care Reform

Health care has been an area of discussion for some time now. In the United States, the current health care system is a private system that allows individuals to choose their own method of care. Despite the freedom that comes with the independent nature of this type of health care system, the true disposition creates more problems than it solves. The privacy of the health care institutions has caused affordability and access to become serious issues with this system. Additionally, those with lower socioeconomic status fall short of the ability to access the same pool of resources as everyone else. Due to the issues with affordability, access, and the poor infrastructure of the health care system, a universal health care system should be installed for all citizens of the United States.

Health care is defined as, “the maintaining and restoration of health by the treatment and prevention of disease especially by trained and licensed professionals” (Merriam-Webster). Despite this commonly accepted definition, many argue that the health care system in America is not meeting this definition adequately. The current system utilizes many different facilities to provide health care, including private business, government owned institutions, and some non-profit organizations. People across the country utilize different methods to access coverage. Some get health care coverage through their employer, while others buy it privately. Therefore money is a requirement in order to have access to health care, which has manifested into an expansive issue. The World Health Organization estimates that the amount of money spent on health care by the United States is more than any other country. In 2013, the Bloomberg ranking o...

... middle of paper ...

...healthcare.gov/

Medicaid Home | Medicaid.gov. (n.d.). Medicaid Home | Medicaid.gov. Retrieved May

19, 2014, from http://www.medicaid.gov/

Public Policy. (n.d.). Medicaid Issues. Retrieved May 19, 2014, from

http://www.thearc.org/what-we-do/public-policy/policy-issues/medicaid

Singletary, M. (n.d.). It Pays To Do the Math in the Budget Game. It Pays to Do the Math

In the Budget Game. Retrieved May 19, 2014, from

http://www.unionplus.org/money-credit/budgeting-tips

The Bill of Rights: A Transcription. (n.d.). National Archives and Records

Administration. Retrieved May 19, 2014, from

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/bill_of_rights_transcript.html

What's So Bad About Universal Health Care? | Human Events. (2009, May 14). Human

Events. Retrieved May 19, 2014, from

http://www.humanevents.com/2009/05/14/whats-so-bad-about-universal-health

care/

Show More
Related

  • Healthcare Reform in the United States

    1608 Words  | 4 Pages

    For decades, one of the many externalities that the government is trying to solve is the rising costs of healthcare. "Rising healthcare costs have hurt American competitiveness, forced too many families into bankruptcy to get their families the care they need, and driven up our nation's long-term deficit" ("Deficit-Reducing Healthcare Reform," 2014). The United States national government plays a major role in organizing, overseeing, financing, and more so than ever delivering health care (Jaffe, 2009). Though the government does not provide healthcare directly, it serves as a financing agent for publicly funded healthcare programs through the taxation of citizens. The total share of the national publicly funded health spending by various governments amounts to 4 percent of the nation's gross domestic product, GDP (Jaffe, 2009). By 2019, government spending on Medicare and Medicaid is expected to rise to 6 percent and 12 percent by 2050 (Jaffe, 2009). The percentages, documented from the Health Policy Brief (2009) by Jaffe, are from Medicare and Medicaid alone. The rapid rates are not due to increase of enrollment but growth in per capita costs for providing healthcare, especially via Medicare.

    Read More

  • Organizational Systems And Quality Leadership

    1835 Words  | 4 Pages

    On a global scale, the United States is a relatively wealthy country of advanced industrialization. Unfortunately, the healthcare system is among the costliest, spending close to 18% of gross domestic product (GDP) towards funding healthcare (2011). No universal healthcare coverage is currently available. United States healthcare is currently funded through private, federal, state, and local sources. Coverage is provided privately and through the government and military. Nearly 85% of the U.S. population is covered to some extent, leaving a population of close to 48 million without any type of health insurance. Cost is the primary reason for lack of insurance and individuals foregoing medical care and use of prescription medications.

    Read More

  • Healthcare Reform and the Affordable Care Act

    1937 Words  | 4 Pages

    Healthcare has been a topic of discussion with the majority of the country. Issues with insurance coverage, rising costs, limited options to gain coverage, and the quality of healthcare have become concerns for law makers, healthcare providers and the general public. Some of those concerns were alleviated with the passing of the Affordable Care Act, but new concerns have developed with problems that have occurred in the implementation of the new law. The main concerns of the country are if the Affordable Care Act will be able to overcome the issues that plagued the old healthcare system, the cost of the program, and how will the new law affect the quality of the health delivery system.

    Read More

  • It's Time to Reform American Health Care

    2249 Words  | 5 Pages

    However, our system is based on money. The more money you have to spend, the better medical services you will receive. ?According to the Bureau of Labor education at the university of main (2003), America spends more money oh health care than any other nation, "$4,178 per capita on health care in 1998?, compared to the average of $1,783. (BLE., 2003, p.23). Still an estimated "42.5 million Americans are living without health insurance", which prevents them from receiving medical treatment. (Climan, Scharff, 2003, p.33). The numbers of un-insured Americans continue to rise. Tim Middleton (2002) states, ?insurance premiums grow at a rate greater than wages,? when you have a low-income job. (¶ 9). With our current economy recession, taxes are rising and small business employers are unable to purchase health plans for their employees. Employees are realizing that they are unable to gain insurance from their jobs and beginning to speak out about the high price of health care.

    Read More

  • Health Care Costs For The United States

    767 Words  | 2 Pages

    In order to make ones’ health care coverage more affordable, the nation needs to address the continually increasing medical care costs. Approximately more than one-sixth of the United States economy is devoted to health care spending, such as: soaring prices for medical services, costly prescription drugs, newly advanced medical technology, and even unhealthy lifestyles. Our system is spending approximately $2.7 trillion annually on health care. According to experts, it is estimated that approximately 20%-30% of that spending (approx. $800 billion a year) appears to go towards wasteful, redundant, or even inefficient care.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay: The United States is not The Greatest Country in The World

    1772 Words  | 4 Pages

    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 ...

    Read More

  • Free Healthcare in the US

    1778 Words  | 4 Pages

    A health care system that provides free health care services to its entire citizen can be termed as universal health care. This is a situation where all citizens are protected from financial costs in health care. It is recognized around the globe as it provides a specific package of benefits to all citizens in the entire nation. For instance, free health care can result to improved health outcomes. In addition, it provides financial risk protection and an improved access to health services. There is an increasing debate on how citizen should be provided with free medical services. Although United State does not permit free health care services it should have free health care for all citizens. This is due to the fact that healthcare is the largest industry in United State. Due to the fact that United State is a rich country, it should have a healthcare system that provides free services such as treatment for its entire citizen. This will play a significant role, as it will stop medical bankruptcies in...

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Universal Health Care System

    1099 Words  | 3 Pages

    The implementation of a universal health care system in the United States is an important challenge that needs to be overcome. There are numerous amount of editorial that argue on both sides of the debate. Some people argue that a universal health care system would bring costs down and increase access to care while others argue that a universal health care system would be too expensive and reduce the quality of care. The correct answer requires intensive understanding and economics to overcome, the arguments must be examined for a proper answer.

    Read More

  • Health Care Reform

    1541 Words  | 4 Pages

    There has been a lot of talk and debate lately over Health Care Reform, as people are trying to answer the question – Should a universally accessible health care system be implemented in the United States (US)? This ongoing highly debatable issue remains a hot topic among US citizens from all walks of life, from the very poor to the very wealthy. Health Care Reform affects everyone. The vast majority of the US population is very dissatisfied with the current state of health care. According to the ABC News and Washington Post cooperative poll, 57 percent of Americans aren’t satisfied with the overall system of health care (Langer, 2009). Consequently, the issue of the Health Care Reform was born, but before analyzing the actual aspects of this reform it will be wise to brush up on those major attitudes and concerns which occupy ordinary people and how they respond to the unfolding changes in the area of health care and social security.

    Read More

  • Obamacare: The Affordable Care Act

    1259 Words  | 3 Pages

    Health insurance, too many American citizens, is not an option. However, some citizens find it unnecessary. Working in the health care field, I witness the effects of uninsured patients on medical offices. Too often, I see a “self-pay” patient receive care from their doctor and then fail to pay for it. Altogether, their refusal to pay leaves the office at a loss of money and calls for patients to pay extra in covering for the cost of the care the uninsured patient received. One office visit does not seem like too big of an expense, but multiple patients failing to pay for the care they receive adds up. Imagine the hospital bills that patients fail to pay; health services in a hospital are double, sometimes triple, in price at a hospital. It is unfair that paying patients are responsible for covering these unpaid services. Luckily, the Affordable Care Act was passed on March 23, 2010, otherwise known as Obamacare. Obamacare is necessary in America because it calls for all citizens to be health insured, no worrying about pre-existing conditions, and free benefits for men and women’s health.

    Read More

  • Universal Healthcare: The Wrong Type of Change

    1835 Words  | 4 Pages

    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-...

    Read More

  • The Need for Healthcare Reform

    1818 Words  | 4 Pages

    Over 46.3 Million People in the United States (15.4 percent of the US population) did not have health insurance in 2008 (DeNavas-Walt, Proctor, & Smith, 2009). Consequently, many Americans receive little or no health care. Many, but not all of these people are women and children. Some are destitute, some are not. Many of these people are hard working Americans who cannot afford coverage, yet earn too much money to qualify for their state Medicaid plans, but should have access to health care. In 2008, health care expenditures surpassed $2.3 trillion, more than three times the $714 billion spent in 1990, and over eight times the $253 billion spent in 1980 (Kimbuende, Ranji, Lundy, & Salganicoff, 2010, para. 1). In 2007, 62.1 Percent of all US bankruptcies were related to medical expenses. Ironically, 78 percent of the medical bankruptcies were filed by people who had health insurance (Himmelstein, Thorne, Warren, & Woolhandler, 2009). Due to the rising costs of healthcare and increased numbers of the uninsured most Americans support the need for healthcare reform; however the reform that is proposed by the government is unfair, too expensive and inadequate to meet the needs of our population.

    Read More

  • Problems With the U.S. Healthcare System

    1646 Words  | 4 Pages

    The U.S. expends far more on healthcare than any other country in the world, yet we get fewer benefits, less than ideal health outcomes, and a lot of dissatisfaction manifested by unequal access, the significant numbers of uninsured and underinsured Americans, uneven quality, and unconstrained wastes. The financing of healthcare is also complicated, as there is no single payer system and payment schemes vary across payors and providers.

    Read More

  • Healthcare in the United States

    1388 Words  | 3 Pages

    With the United Nations listing health care as natural born right and the escalating cost of health care America has reached a debatable crisis. Even if you do have insurance it's a finical strain on most families.

    Read More

  • Essay On Us Healthcare 2050

    1009 Words  | 3 Pages

    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).

    Read More

More about Health Care Reform in the United States

Open Document