...The costs of healthcare in the United States has skyrocketed over the last several years. According to CMS, as cited on unitedhealthgroup.com (2015) the GDP has grown from historically 11% to an estimated 19.6% by 2021. This trend indicates that the cost of healthcare in the US is rapidly excessing the income level of those who pay for it. Over 60% of employed individuals that receive healthcare benefits from their employers have experienced such a rise in premiums and out-of-pockets expenses that it has more than doubled between 1999 and 2008 (ssab.gov, 2009). While there are multiple components of the healthcare system and multiple populations that the healthcare system needs to cover one of the largest single population that will be a tremendous consumer of healthcare is the elderly population. As we have discussed many times throughout this class, the elderly population is growing by huge numbers primarily due to the baby boomer generation hitting retirement age. According to the American Hospital Association (2007) the aging Baby Boomers will cause the over 65 population to almost triple by year 2030. Along with this immense population group they will bring with them demands and challenges for the healthcare system as 6 out of 10 will be living with multiple chronic illness. With Medicare being the primary source of payment of healthcare in the over-65 age group it has been noted that the median annual out-of-pocket cost to Medicare beneficiaries will reach approximately...
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...University Health care The United States is having major problems with crisis in health care such as high insurance cost, Medicaid and Medicare recipients, and uninsured people in America. The United States focus on Universal Health care or coverage. “The goal of universal health coverage is to ensure that all people obtain the health services they need without suffering financial hardship when paying for them (WHO, 2014)”. The cost of health care is continuing to rise and millions of people are without medical insurance. Business and facilities are closing, loss of jobs, high unemployment rates have become major crisis in health care in the United States. People who are employed are face with the challenges of being uninsured or paying higher rates but receiving lesser coverage. In addition, I will read and analyze the two articles, “The Health Care Crisis and What to do about it, (Krugman & Robin, 2006)”, and “Health Care Special Issue: Creative Destruction, (Cohn, 2007)”. “THE HEALTH CARE CRISIS AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT, (KRUGMAN & WELLS 2006)” The United States are continuing to have health care crisis such as high cost of insurance coverage, people who are uninsured, Medicaid and Medicare recipients, high unemployment rates and many other problems. The article “The Health Care Crisis and What to do about it, (Krugman & Wells, 2006)” discusses the crisis that America is experiencing and what solutions should be taking to improve the system of health care. The...
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...Medical Care to an Aging Population In today’s world the aging population is rapidly growing, and with falling fertility rates and the constant increase of the human life span, the United States is preparing for the realization that the fastest growing populace is what the nation considers to be senior citizens. For health care organizations any type of demographic change will automatically bring economic and social challenges. Almost 80 million babies were born in the United States from January 1946 through December 1964. This segment of the population is known as the Baby Boomers. In 2011 the first wave of Baby Boomers began reaching age 65, the age of entitlement. Every day from today for the next 16 years approximately 10,000 Baby Boomers will turn age 65 and become entitled to Medicare (www.politifact.com, 2011). With an increasingly older population come the need for a greater number of prescription drugs, a greater number of medical office visits in order to extend the aged quality of life, and a greater need for long term care. 80 million Americans within the next 16 years will receive some form of government funding for health care adding to the already fraught health care economy. Ageing population puts strain on medical costs: Bernanke warns of ‘fiscal crisis’ With more than 10,000 Baby Boomers reaching the age of retirement and Medicare eligibility every day for the next decade and a half the nation’s and states’ government are facing a disastrous fiscal crisis. The...
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...Health Care Economics and the Uninsured School of Nursing Health Care Economics and the Uninsured The United States health care system is a large and complex structure organized to deliver health care services to the country’s residents (Maurer, 2013). The system is not systematically organized, but is the result of the interrelationships between numerous influences such as culture, consumers, epidemiology, health professionals, governmental policy, technology, and economics (Maurer, 2013). Due to the various, and, often conflicting, interests on the U.S. health care system, large disparities exist in the delivery of health care to consumers. In fact, according to Maurer (2013), “the consumer is the most vulnerable component and is the most likely to be hurt by ineffective functioning of the system” (p. 63). Because of the ineffectiveness of the current system for so many Americans and the disparities that exist among consumers, the American Nurses Association [ANA] (2008) described the current U.S. health care system as “in a state of crisis” (Executive Summary, para. 1). For many Americans, the major obstacle preventing them from receiving quality and reliable health care is a lack of health insurance (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality [AHRQ], 2012; Maurer, 2013; Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured [KCM&U], 2012). More specifically, the way our health care system is financed, a piecemeal approach of...
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...this population growth? 4. In the present global economy, what challenges will governments of these countries face in ensuring the health of their aging populations? Abstract The goal of this paper is to explore three countries of ranging income groups, their population life expectancy, the chronic diseases that have become prevalent within the aging community, and the repercussions the aging community will have on the future. There are many aspects that will be covered such as the growing trend of population growth rates and how it may affect the economies of these populations in the future. The ramifications of these occurrences and what it means for the future of health care coverage for a country whose population is growing exponentially as well as a population whose aging population is increasing. We will also explore what strategies, plans and agencies that are in place to accommodate this aging population growth, as well as what can happen if there are not adequate plans to cover this crisis. The Aging Community and its Implications on the Future There is a global crisis lurking in the not too distant future. The aging population is growing and so is chronic disease. Let’s examine this by taking a snapshot of three countries of ranging income groups and start with their life expectancy projections. The United States (US) (high income), Mongolia (middle income), and Kyrgyzstan (low income) were randomly chosen as the three demographics to explore (World...
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...March 23, 2010 marked a momentous occasion for President Barack Obama and the 111th United States Congress. This is the day that the 44th President of the United States of America signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This was the largest social legislation passed in decades. Just one week later, on March 30, 2010, President Barack Obama enacted the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 in order to amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (Stolber and Pear, A19) Together they make enormous changes to health care services in the United States. This health care act affects everybody in the United States. This act will not only impact everyone as an individual, but it will also impact businesses as a whole. For this reason, this is something that everyone in America should have a clear understanding about. One of the main points of the new health care reform is to ensure that all Americans have insurance. With insurance not having been mandatory before, Americans who were uninsured had to deal with several financial problems when it came to paying medical bills. There are several individuals that do not have any medical insurance because they either do not have a job or the job that they do have does not offer insurance. And even some people who have the option to have insurance may not buy if because they don’t want to pay for it. And then these same people who have the option to have it but choose not to may end up using a government...
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...Interpretation September 9, 2009 On September 9, 2009, the 44th President of the United States, Barack Hussein Obama, addressed a Joint Session of Congress to speak on comprehensive health care reform. A highly intelligent man, he received his Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University and his Juris Doctorate from Harvard University in 1991. To his credit, he was the first African-American to be President of the Harvard Law Review (Butterfield). Throughout his life, President Obama has displayed high degree of cognitive intelligence leading to his executive intelligence. His insight into common problems was evident as early as his days organizing community rallies up to his present position of President of the United States. His level of creativity fostered widespread support during his ramp up to becoming the 44th president. The country bought and continues to buy what he is selling, and this has allowed his campaign and presidency to get the biggest genuine grassroots support the country had seen to date. Health care reform was one of several promises Candidate Barack Obama made during the 2008 election season. Now, President Obama promises health care reform will no longer be an issue for the common American. In his speech to the Joint Session of Congress, he stated he was “determined to be the last” (Obama), in reference to past presidents who attempted to overhaul health care reform and failed. As President Obama walked into the Chamber of Congress that evening...
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...The existing arrangement of the U.S. health care system leaves large numbers of the American population without access to adequate health care. Currently, about 45 million Americans do not have any health insurance, resulting in inability to receive the necessary care required for a healthy and productive life (NCHC). Further, government run programs such as Medicaid and SCHIP, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, are not sufficient and effective means of providing care for those eligible for them. Poor Families in America’s Health Care Crisis by Ronald J. Angel, Laura Lein, and Jane Henrici illustrates how the safety net for health care through current government programs does not work and how access to health care cannot be considered universal. The Three City Study, a large, multidisciplinary examination of the consequences of welfare reform for children and families in poor neighborhoods in Boston, Chicago, and San Antonio, gives a personalized look into the flaws of the United States’ welfare and health care systems (Angel 7). Through these ethnographic studies, it can be determined that the current safety net for poor Americans is made ineffective because of discontinuity of care and the employer-based nature of health care. Poverty can be defined as the “lack of social capital or power to control one’s life or that of one’s children in important ways” (Angel 30). With this being said, it can easily be seen why poor Americans live very chaotic and unstable...
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...throughout the United States are struggling to obtain insurance due to the cost or the acceptance process. Numerous attempts have been implemented to try and resolve this growing issue, though none have been successful. However, the crisis could be settled by forming a government funded agency that offered insurance to everyone, without regards to their race, ethnicity, religion, or financial situation. Without question, changes in the availability of insurance need to be made. Without any modifications, the health care industry will cease to exist. This crisis will not go away on its own. Overall, the insurance unavailability crisis deserves urgent attention...
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...workers residing in rural areas. Additionally, further advancements in drugs and medical technology lead to the new innovations, products and new areas of marketing. Health spending is essential because it fulfills personal and social needs for medical service that are set in place to better health, increase productivity, and save lives (Squires, 2012). In comparison with the many other sectors of the economy, a significant portion of the health care is publicly funded. When viewing other countries, we notice that they have adopted a universal healthcare system. This means that the systems are financed through taxes. In the United States, there are systems in place such as Medicare and Medicaid (Squires, 2012). Medicare is an insurance program for persons who are either elderly or disable. Medicaid is insurance coverage for families who have low-income. It is public funds that assist people with health care in these two insurance programs. There are also tax policies that promote and provide support to employer-based health insurance and delivery systems such as, Veterans Health Administration. Due to the fact that the public sector has a lot of pull in regards to healthcare, it has become had to make sure that we are gaining value for the time and money spent. From decade to decade we have seen the United States health care spending increase. It was reported in the year 2010 that the U.S. had healthcare expenses that cost $2.6 trillion dollars. This is ten times over the amount that...
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...Americas Health Care Systems Kim Capobianco RN, BSN University of Phoenix Health Care Organizations and Delivery Systems HCS 531 Americas Health Care Systems This paper will look at the health care systems in the United States and will include the implications of beliefs and values that are placed on the health care system. Examples of the various models of health care delivery systems that have been used in the United States and how the health care system applies to the models of the health care delivery in the United States. The definition of a health care system is prevention, treatment and management of illness and preservation of mental and physical well-being through the service offered by the medical and allied health profession (The Free Dictionary, 2009). Many people believe that the current model of health care in the United States is the best health care in the world. However, it has major shortcomings that are becoming more and more visible. The United States has the most expensive health care system in the world based on health expenditure per capita and on total expenditures as a percentage of gross domestic products (Hellender, 2001). The reasons for the high costs in the U.S is due to the rising costs of medical technology, prescription medication and administrative costs resulting from the complex multiple payer system in the U.S. Another reason for the high costs are the high number of uninsured people in the U.S. who required treatment of illness...
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...The Love-Hate Relationship between the U.S. Healthcare Industry and the U.S. Economy The healthcare industry plays an important part in the economy of the United States. The sustained increase and high level of spending on health care has been the subject of discussion and scrutiny for several decades. The enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) was hardly the first fiscal policy for healthcare in the history of the economy. There is a long list of fiscal policy attempts from predecessors such as Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Richard Nixon and most recently Bill Clinton (Sparer, p462). In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt drafted amended provisions to his pending Social Security legislation to include publicly funded health care programs but ultimately removed the provisions due to opposition by the American Medical Association (Coombs, p5). Following the Second World War, President Harry Truman called for universal health care as a part of his Fair Deal in 1949 but strong opposition stopped that part of the Fair Deal (Peon, p161-168). On July 30, 1965 President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the legislation establishing the Medicare and Medicaid program, social insurance programs administered by the United Stated government providing health insurance coverage to people who are either 65 or meet other special criteria for need (Roemer, p845). In October 1972, President Richard Nixon signed the Social Security Administration Amendments...
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...President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law. There is no denying that Healthcare reform is a necessity at this point. Something absolutely has to change in America’s Healthcare. “It seems clear that if we continue down the path of healthcare delivery we current practice in this country, even if it is practiced a bit more efficiently, we will have failed. We will bankrupt this country, and the health of our citizens will continue to decline” (Riley, 2009). The question remains however, is the Affordable Care Act the answer to our crisis? The intentions of the ACA are honorable. Creators plan to reform healthcare by attacking several areas with issues. Main focus of goals include Universality – The right of every citizen to have healthcare. All citizens should be in a common risk pool. Financing – intent to reform based on spreading the cost of healthcare out equally. The common risk pool comes largely into play here because the young and healthy will subsidize some of the care needed by the sick and elderly. Cost – Reduction – Stabilizing the cost of healthcare and reducing the rate of growth Payment Reform – paying for outcomes and values achieved, rather than the volume of care given. Quality and process improvement - Components that will improve reporting and quality indicators of care. Prevention and Wellness - goal to reduce the cost of healthcare by promoting healthy living, therefore, less need for medical care. (Panning, 2014). In some ways the...
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...Medical Care for an Aging Population Medical Care for an Aging Population Aging – an inevitable event all people face. No matter race, ethnicity, or gender, aging affects all individuals in ways as unique as one’s personality. As the Baby-Boomer generation reaches retirement age, the need for expanding national geriatric medical services has become an urgent matter. Even with an increase in a healthier population of seniors in today’s world, many elderly people often have multiple chronic illnesses, ranging from high blood pressure to such serious diagnosis’s as kidney failure; and both major and minor (or easily treatable diseases) can be expensive to treat. The Unites States, like many other counties of the world, is in a health care crisis. Also like other countries, the U.S. government has stepped to the plate to try to find a solution to be sure not only the aging population’s medical needs are met but also all other citizens of the country. Health Care Reform and health care costs are a current hot topic for the U.S., and many ideas, solutions, and opinions exists on the issue. To further evaluate and gain alternative perspective, three articles (each with a different perspective on the subject) have been reviewed and summarized to help reach a better understanding of what the aging population and rising health care costs they will accrue means to the financial state of the Unites States. Article one is an article related to the increasing demand for medical...
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...Running Head: Healthcare System Healthcare System in US [Name of the Writer] [Name of the Institution] Healthcare System in US Introduction United States is the largest and most diverse society on the globe. It spends almost 2 trillion dollars every year on health care, which is one in every seven dollars in the economy. U.S is one of the very few nations where all its citizens do not have medical coverage. Although it spends heavily on per capita on health care, and it has the most advanced medical technology system in the world, still it is not the healthiest nation on earth. The system performs so poorly that it leaves 50 million without health coverage and millions more inadequately covered (Garson, 2010). Discussion History of Medicare In 1945, the United States president Harry Truman decided to bring to the attention of the Congress. The message was in an attempt to develop a universal plan that would be applicable to all United States citizens. The Congress contemplated the bill that would establish a healthcare plan. The debate for a comprehensive plan carried on for twenty years. The prolonged wait made president Truman give up on the idea. Even though the president had given up on the healthcare bill, Social Security system and a number of other participants continued the efforts. After two decades of struggle, in 1965, the Medicare and Medicaid plans became legislation after the Congress approved the bill. President Lyndon Johnson’s vision of a “Great...
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