Feasibility of the National Health Insurance in South Africa

The health of a nation plays an integral part in the overall success and economic well being of a particular country. The United Stated, while pouring more money into the healthcare system than any other country, still stands as a broken system with inadequate care for many citizens. One of the most marginalized groups of people, African American women, continually score alarmingly low on basic measures of overall health. The healthcare discrepancies between white and black women in the United States are alarming, and they reveal flaws in the American health care system as a whole.

Since the publication of the Institute of Medicine’s “Unequal Treatment Report” in 2002, highlighting the startling but harsh truths behind these health care differences, there has been a renewed interest in understanding the sources of these inconsistencies, with any seeking to identify contributing factors in hopes of creating an effective solution in reducing or eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in health care

Health is dynamic and determined by the determinants of health that have factors that can both benefit and hinder our overall health (Liamputtong, Fanany, & Verrinder, 2012, p. 9). The primary health care (PHC) principles accessibility, inter-sectorial collaboration, appropriate technology, emphasis on health promotion and public participation helps all individuals at different social standings based on income levels and geographical location determined by the social determinants of health to access PHC and make an equitable health care system (McMurray & Clendon, 2011, pp. 36-44; Liamputtong, Fanany, & Verrinder, 2012, pp. 13-14).

Access to health care ervices is different betweeen races and it is influenced by geography, income. culture and the types of health coverage.

The purpose of this paper is to exemplify the healthcare crisis of African Americans within the broader context of American healthcare reform. In order for one to appreciate the depth of necessity for healthcare reform in the African American community, he or she must have a general understanding of the history of healthcare for African Americans. As stated by the institute of medicine in a study assessing the health and mental health disparities of African Americans, “The sources of these disparities are complex, are rooted in historic and contemporary inequities, and involve many participants at several levels, including health systems, their administrative and bureaucratic processes, utilization managers, healthcare professionals, and

The healthcare system has come under heavy criticism from experts from all over the world. According to Schroder, 44% of the population has no access to the healthcare system. (Schroder, 2003) There are many clinics which charge are free of cost or are charging lesser fees, but all of these are burdened and do not have the capability to meet the requirements. There are certain ethnic communities that are by enlarge poor who are of the opinion that they have been deliberately been left out of the healthcare system. These have led to the

Health disparities amongst African-Americans continue to destabilize not just the various communities but the health care system as a whole. Minority groups especially African-Americans are more probable to agonize from certain health illnesses, have higher mortality rates and lower life expectancy than another other race in the nation. Health disparities are complex and incorporate lifestyle choices, socioeconomic factors such as income, education and employment and access to care services. For the elimination of health disparities within the African-American community, there requires a need for equivalent access to health care and cultural suitable health ingenuities.

Today, racial and ethnic disparities exist in the public healthcare system in the United States. It is strongly supported by data that depicts members of the minority groups receive disproportionately from different health issues such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and asthma, among other conditions. The main contributors to the racial and ethnic disparities in the public healthcare are the social determinants of the health external to the healthcare delivery system. In addition, social and economic status also affect people’s vulnerability to the disease and their accessibility to public health services. The article provides historical analysis that shows a deteriorating status in the

One of the points raised in IOM’s article to prove that racism is a prevalent cause of health care disparity is the way the health care system is set-up, meaning at times, some hospitals and clinics can adopt a policy to contain health care cost, but may pose hindrances to minority patients’ capability to access the care.

There is some sort of reasons existing for the disparities in health care such as,

First and foremost, it is necessary to acknowledge that racial disparities in healthcare exist between African-Americans and other races. African-Americans are dying at a faster rate than their white counterparts (Mays et. al, 2007). Ultimately, this social problem leads

South Africans have been struggling with access to medical care for many decades. The root of the problem of access to medical care in South Africa is mainly attributed to the poverty located in the region. Many living in poverty suffer from inadequate resources such as a lack of clean water, malnourishment, lack of effective sanitation, and unreasonable housing conditions. South Africans living in urban areas are more likely to receive better healthcare services than those in rural and remote regions. Sickness in South Africa has been an ongoing issue due to their history of persistent racial inequality, inadequate human resources, and the relentless burden of infections and noninfectious diseases. Proposals to improve the current system include increasing government funding to build hospitals, especially in rural areas, strengthening the public sector of the current healthcare system by utilizing the services of the private sector, improving the

2014). The model it promotes widely takes recognition of the wider determinants of health that focus on socio-economic, environmental and influences of politics (Ahnquist. J, Wamala. S.P & Lindstrom. M, 2012. Within the deprived and less well off communities, multiple disadvantages are reinforced by the presence of these determinants of health and thus continually diminish people’s health status (Tod. A, Norton. C, Baillie, L, Deaton, C et al, 2015). This calls for the need to actively work in partnerships with policy makers, education, health services professionals and the relevant communities facing inequalities (Soni. H, 2014). There tends to be a perception that maybe one size would fit all(Piazza. J, Charles. S, Luong. G & Almeida, D. 2015). This happens as the social model of public health never puts emphasis on individual behaviours but on action that healthcare should be downstream- treatment of illness intervention in individuals(Tod. A.M & Hirst, J, 2014). There is also a need to look upstream –preventative healthcare where the impact would be felt within the different communities and population at large that would avoid the requirement for downstream treatment (Malhotra.S & Naughton. L, 2015). If barriers are tackled in the first place that hinder access to health and care services within people and communities at

Changes in access to health care across different populations are the chief reason for current disparities in health care provision. These changes occur for several reasons, and some of the main factors that contribute to the problem in the United States are: Lack of health insurance – Several racial, ethnic, socioeconomic and other minority groups lack adequate health insurance coverage in comparison with people who can afford healthcare insurance. The majority of these individuals are likely to put off health care or go without the necessary healthcare and medication that is needed. Lack of financial resources – Lack of accessibility to funding is a barrier to health care for a lot of people living in the United States

Worldwide, approximately 1.3 billion people do not have access to affordable and efficient healthcare and out of those who have access, almost 170 million are forced to spend around 40 % of their income on medical treatment (Asante et al,2016).In low and middle income countries (LMICs), the major constraint to the access of healthcare is financial burden, where out-of-pocket payments (OPP) contribute to approximately 50 % of total health expenditure (WHO, 2010). As a result, in these countries there is high probability of many households being pushed into poverty due to high medical expenses (McIntyre,2006).The matter of concern in LMICS is that poor and disadvantaged groups of population do not have access to adequate quality of healthcare.For instance, according to WHO (2010) up to 20 % of women in rich population are more likely to have a birth attended by skilled health worker than a poor woman. Therefore, taking an action to address health inequities faced in these countries would save up to 700,000 women.