Frontline: Sick Around the World

Adults, 65 years old and older and people with disabilities are eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. Physician services and hospitalizations are covered by medicare. An additional supplemental program may be purchased to cover prescription drugs. Low income families and children may qualify for Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Medicaid has significantly lower copays and out of pocket expenses compared to private insurance. Unemployed individuals may qualify for Medicaid depending on the state.

PPACA made health insurance coverage available for people who would be uninsured otherwise due to affordability issues or pre-existing conditions (The National Cancer Institute, 2013).

“The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: Implications for Public Health Policy and Practice.” Public Health Reports. Association of Schools of Public Health. n.d. Web. 14 July 2015. This paper claims that the PPACA will cut the number of uninsured Americans in half. The act attempts to provide nearly universal coverage and improve the quality and equity of said coverage through reforms to insurance standards and the marketplace. It also attempts to improve the quality of healthcare and the efficiency of its delivery by allowing consumers to edge the system into a more integrated state and measuring performance. It attempts to encourage preventive medicine by targeting chronic illnesses and funding community-based medicine. These changes will bring huge opportunities for improvement in the system, many of which are subtle and nuanced and will only be seen as the plan rolls into act over the next few

The fifth country that was visited was Switzerland. Switzerland spends 11.6% of its GDP on healthcare. Citizens pay $750 a month for premiums. If you are too poor to pay for your premiums, the government will pay. Citizens pay 10% of the cost of services for a co-pay. Switzerland also used the “social insurance” model. 95% of the population already had voluntary insurance when they country switched systems. All citizens are required to have coverage. Switzerland shows that in a high capitalist nation with powerful insurance and pharmaceutical industries, universal coverage is possible. Insurance companies are not allowed to make a profit off of basic care and are not able to select only young and healthy applicants. The government sets the prices on drugs, but the insurers and providers negotiate on all other prices. Switzerland has the second most expensive system behind the U.S. The Swiss do not have gatekeepers, some insurance plans may require them or may give a discount for using them.

The US has recently adopted a healthcare policy aimed to get more Americans insured. This policy is named the Affordable Care Act in 2010. “In 2013 there were 42 million uninsured individuals in the United States. “(The Common, pg. 153) There has since been increase in individuals who are covered either by private insurance or by Medicaid/Medicare which had a coverage increase with the new policy. It is believed that millions of people will now have health insurance compared to previous years.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA) was designed to decrease health care costs and require health care access to all U.S. citizens. The Act has the potential for reducing the cost of health care in the United States; however, with many risks which could possibly strain the health care system, increase debt, and decrease the quality of care many are concerned.

What would you say when I told you that if you look at a list of the worlds developed industrialized nations that there is only one developed country in the world that doesn’t have a universal healthcare system. Some of the countries on this list include Japan, Germany, and even Canada. The United States, a global power, our home and the world’s largest economy is the only westernized industrial country without universal healthcare. The amount of people dying due to a lack of medical coverage is at an all-time high, while the U.S also has the most expensive healthcare system in the world for its citizens. According to Toni Johnson, author of the article “Healthcare Costs and U.S Competiveness” “The United States spends an estimated $2 trillion annually on healthcare expenses, more than any other industrialized country. According to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the United States spends two-and-a-half times more than the OECD average, and yet ranks with Turkey and Mexico as the only OECD countries without universal health coverage.” (Johnson) For a country that spends so much it seems strange we do not even offer the best health care in the world. It also seems even stranger that there are over 45 million Americans who are going without health insurance. (Johnson) Universal health care is defined as a basic guarantee of health care to all its

Countries that outperform the U.S. address these issues through universal health insurance, stronger primary care systems, payment approaches that minimize billing conflicts, and greater investment in social supports that lead to better health” (Squires,2017).

The PPACA was structured to accomplish insurance reform through several avenues (Vincent & Reed, 2014). Medicaid program expansion and the individual mandate are two of the primary elements of healthcare insurance and finance reform (Vincent & Reed, 2014). Additionally preventative health services delivered without cost, removal of health insurance exclusions for preexisting conditions, allowing children under the age of 26 to remain on their parent’s healthcare insurance, and gradually decreasing the out of pocket costs for Medicare Part D participants are mandated by the provisions of the PPACA (Vincent & Reed, 2014).

Contrary to what many people believe, America’s health status is not quite “up-to-par,” to say the least. Over forty-seven million people in the United States lack health insurance; that is more than 15% of our nation’s population! At first this disturbing truth seems impossible to believe, being as America is one of the most technologically advanced and economically developed countries in the world. “We spend trillions of dollars per year on medical care. That’s nearly half of all the health dollars spent in the world. But we’ve seen our statistics. We live shorter, often sicker lives than almost every other industrialized nation. “We rank 30th in [global] life expectancy” (Adelman 2008). Knowing this brings rise to the question: why are

The U.S. is an industrialized nation that continues to be behind on providing health care coverage to all citizens. However, the German health care system came up with a plan that ensured all citizens are provided with some form of health care coverage; nevertheless, the U.S. continues to dispute health care reform and how to provide coverage to all citizens. “Health spending per capita in the United States is much higher than in other countries – at least $2,535 dollars, or 51%, higher than Norway, the next largest per capita spender. Furthermore, the United States spends nearly double the average $3,923 for the 15 countries ("Health Care Cost," 2011, table 1)”.

Germany has a market based health system. They have universal health care that covers medical, dental, mental health and even homeopathy. Insurance companies cannot make a profit from insured customers. Therefore, the price for insurance is negotiated between the government and the Insurance provider. Like any other healthcare system there are

The Patient Protection and Affordable Healthcare Act (PPACA) is federal legislation designed to increase the rate of health insurance coverage and reduce the overall costs of healthcare. Along with the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act it represents the most significant government expansion and regulatory overhaul of the U.S. Healthcare system since the passage of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965 (Vicni & Stempel, 2012).

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), commonly called Obama care, is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. Together with the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, it represents the most significant government expansion and regulatory overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system since the passage of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. Guaranteed issue will require policies to be issued regardless of any medical condition, and partial community rating will require insurers to offer the same premium to all applicants of the same age and geographical location without regard to gender or most pre-existing conditions. It requires that all individuals not covered by an employer sponsored health plan, Medicaid, Medicare or other public insurance programs, secure an approved private-insurance policy or pay a penalty. According to this system, a child would stay under their parents insurance until they turn twenty-six. The non-participating employers/ citizens, health

America is known to have the worst health care of all rich countries (www.huppi.com). “A woman had received breast cancer and attempted to report the illness, but was denied because she had not filed a case of acne. By the time her report came through, her breast cancer had doubled” (Barack Obama). Other countries’ health care plans, such as Taiwan and Japan, are not only easily affordable by all, but also provide many services and benefits. Japan holds over 130 million people, all of whom