Health Care Utilization Paper: Option B

Financial burdens greatly limit the system’s accessibility; however, many in the U.S. are unable to fully utilize either option. Census estimates from 1999 indicate that 43 million Americans live without health insurance even though 75 percent of them have a full-time job or live in a household with at least one member working full-time (Mueller, , 5) In addition to the totally uninsured, census estimates also reveal that approximately 42 million other people in the U.S. are underinsured. This means that they have some insurance, but are still unable to afford all of their needed prescriptions, tests, visits to physicians, or hospital

Money plays a huge role in access, therefore it is a vital issue to discuss. Within the current system, lack of money results in lack of health care, which leaves thousands of people without any health care coverage. Between 2001 and 2005, the number of people paying for health insurance increased 30%, however income only raised 3% (Health Care Problems). Adequate income is a necessity and unfortunately that is not present. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, the average annual premium across the country is $16,000. Currently, the average annual income in the United States is $51,107. Mint Money Management suggests that about 4-6% of one’s total income should be spent on insurance, including life, disability, and health insurance. However, the averages in the United States show that the average person spends about 31% of their income on health insurance, which is not financially beneficial. When this rise in health insurance is not parallel to the inflation of income, innocent people are left without a method to achieve health care. There is a program for those who can’t afford health insurance out of pocket nor have access to it, and that is called Medicaid. Issues still exist with the program. There is only so much funding, which leaves many still uninsured. Additionally, people with Medicaid have difficulty

The Affordable Care Act was signed into law March 23, 2010 by President Barack Obama; however, the constitutionality of the law remained in question. In a controversial 5-to-4 ruling, The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the law on June 28, 2012. The ACA is thought by some as the United States health care rescue, and as its downfall by others.

Over the past decade, government operated and privately owned health care organizations have made improvements identifying patient disabilities, discovering alternative treatments at the patient’s discretion, identifying the cause of diseases, and discovering lifesaving cures. The current United States health care delivery system has undergone enormous changes throughout the years. People the United States utilize health care services for many reasons: to prevent disease, to prevent future illnesses, to eliminate pain, and promote a healthier lifestyle to patients. The Patient Protection and

Many factors can influence a person’s access to health care. Age can influence access to health care because some physicians will treat only children or only the elderly. Income can influence access to health care because specialty driven health care usually involves significant out-of-pocket expense to the patient because some procedures are not covered by health insurance. Location also can be an influence on access to health care. Many patients do not have transportation because of age, dependency on family members, health reasons, or financial reasons. According to the Journal of the National Medical Association, Access to health care can influence the prevalence of chronic disease risks and cancer screening utilization in many ways (Shavers, Shanker, Alberg, 2002, p. 955). If patients are not given

In recent years, health care has been a huge topic in public debates, legislations, and even in deciding who will become the next president. There have been many acts, legislations, and debates on what the country has to do in regards to health care. According to University of Phoenix Read Me First HCS/235 (n.d.), “How health care is financed influences access to health care, how health care is delivered, the quality of health care provided, and its cost”.

The government funds healthcare for many demographics in the U.S . . the access to healthcare ranges in care from racial background and ethnics. Hispanics are less likely to receive healthcare coverage because of the demographics. Hispanics may not be able to afford healthcare as to why they do not receive it. Language barriers between Caucasian’s and physicians may hinder diagnosis of conditions. Caucasians are less likely to get checked for colon cancer or high blood pressure from a healthcare provider. African American is usually checked for this disease. African Americans are more likely to have one of these diseases so being checked by a phycians is common. Individuals that live in neighborhoods that are less fortunate do not know information

The big issue with healthcare is the quantity and quality care. The victims that are punished and receive low quality care are low income families(NAHQ,2014). Socioeconomic status plays a large role in health treatment and diagnosis(ESSENTIAL). The quality care gap between low income individuals and the high income individuals makes the healthcare very controversial. One of the biggest debates that are discussed during elections are healthcare policies. Low income families that are highly prone to more variables such as poor air qualities, exposed water contamination such as the Flint Michigan and much more. The correlation for these low income families often avoid going to doctors before a larger health issue is presented due to many factors such as time and

As stated by Engels, 1892 & Speybroeck, 2010, poor health outcomes have been mainly correlated with low income, low education, unsanitary housing, inadequate health care, unstable employment and unsafe physical environments (p.111). Unfortunately, socioeconomic status is often used to determine the type of medical care someone gets. For instance, people living in low-income neighborhoods have limited access to 'adequate' medical care, which is the opposite experience for those residing in upper-class

the youth are more likely to be uninsured, lack healthcare and eat little or unhealthy due to lack

Many low-income people who cannot afford healthcare services often have a difficult time finding a pharmacy or physician who will accept them as patients. Patients who do not receive the appropriate care from physicians are at a higher risk of developing avoidable diseases. Research has shown 23% of uninsured patients do not get medical care due to the cost of treatment or get delayed medical treatment due to costs (Barton, 2010). Bernard and Sheldon found in 2006 approximately 11.3 million U.S. residents were uninsured from 2001 to 2002, despite being employed (Barton, 2010). According to the textbook; Understanding The U.S. Health Services System; American Indians or Alaska Natives have the highest uninsured population being at 38%, followed by Hispanics and Latinos at 35% (Barton 2010). Furthermore, people between the ages 18 and 44 are among the highest proportion with no health insurance coverage, most of them being males (Barton, 2010). There are numerous reasons why patients lack health insurance coverage, including but not limited to: people cannot afford the premiums, do not qualify for Medicare, Medicaid, or other government programs, their employer does not offer any insurance because they are part time, or they have declined their employers insurance (Barton, 2010). These uninsured patients rarely use nonemergency ambulatory services therefore have a greater chance of having uncontrolled diabetes, hypertension, or cholesterol

The overlap of the three risk factors i.e. minority, low income, and uninsured was represented in a Venn-diagram. According to Shi and Steven (2005), there are almost 2.8 million adults and about1 million children in the U.S. who have 3 risk factors. When an individual have all three risk factor means that they have the poorest health status and inadequate health care access. For instance: a study showed that the low income and education levels was directly related to late diagnoses of breast cancer. The rate of late diagnoses was higher when these two SES was combined with the race/ethnicity. Similarly, 14.6% Caucasian with no other risk factors report poor mental health status, while there are 37.3% of blacks with low income and low

The United States is world renowned for having the best health care if not the most accessible. Citizens have at their disposal a plethora of hospitals, physicians, and therapists to improve their well-being. Statistical data was taken back in 2010 under the Central Texas Region and studied health care coverage and income in regards to the community. The data displayed in the surveys heavily suggest that income/ health in general have a high correlation. The issue that arose with the given data imply that those who are on the lower end of the income spectrum subsequently have no health care coverage and poorer health than those with higher income. In any case with high correlation there are a number of factors influencing the statistical evidence, and in this case sociological barriers are present in regards of inequality and health care.

Having a higher income can provide better nutrition, housing, schooling, and recreation. One explanation for this is that goods and welfare and the experience of inequality are both greater and in turn affect health. At a higher-level health reflect relative status, while at the lower part it is more deprivation. As far as demographics, it also plays an important role in healthcare. As previously mentioned, transportation is a major problem getting to the doctor if you live in a low-income area and cannot afford the luxury of owning a car and having to rely on public

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