Marcus Island

A visit to the emergency department (ED) is usually associated with negative thoughts by most people. It creates preconceived images of overcrowded waiting rooms and routine long waits for treatment (Jarousse, 2011). From 1996 to 2006, ED visits increased annually from 90.3 million to 119.2 million (32% increase). During this same time period, the number of EDs has declined by 186 facilities creating the age old lower supply and greater demand concept (Crane & Noon, 2011). There are many contributing factors that have led to an increase in ED visits. A few of these key drivers include lack of primary care access, rising of the uninsured population, dwindling mental health services, and the growing elderly

Rising health care costs became an issue after the Medicare and Medicaid programs were formed in 1965 and have continued to be a factor in the United States economy since then. “By1970, U.S. government expenditures for health care services and supplies had grown by 140%, from $7.9 billion to $18.9 billion.”() By the 1990s the annual increase in the government health care expenditures was finally brought under control and has fluctuated between a 5% and 8% increase each year since then. This essay will discuss the different factors contributing to the rising costs of health care in the United States, as well as how the cost of health care affects the accessibility and quality of medical care throughout American history.

When focusing on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Systems strategies for improvement with unnecessary emergency room visits, a major key area is accessibility to health care at the appropriate health care setting. For many years, there has been the perception that the emergency department is the only place for someone who is uninsured or underinsured can go to receive the needed and appropriate health care, and in some situations that may be the case. (Rhodes et al, 2013, p.394) Due to the decreases in reimbursements for the publicly funded, more and more physicians are opting out to treating these patients, thus leading to an increase in emergency department utilization. According to a study conducted by Rhodes, Bisgaier, Lawson, Soglen, Krug, and Haitsma, this is becoming a greater concern for the

In “The American Health Care Paradox”, Elizabeth H. Bradley and Lauren A. Taylor explore why the American health care system achieves mediocre results, despite spending a higher percentage of its gross domestic product than any other country in the world on health care. They explain that health care is more than just getting medical treatment, but there are social factors that affect a person 's health. The authors claim that more government spending on medical treatments is not the solution to the health care paradox, but we should focus more on social needs that have a greater impact on health. Case studies and interviews with physicians, other health care providers, and social service providers are used to support the authors’ claims. Though the authors do not explicitly state the path they believe the American health care system should follow, they give examples of foreign health care systems and domestic health care projects that may point in the right direction.

Health care spending in the United States of America as a percentage of the economy has reached astonishing heights, equating to 17.7 percent. This number is shocking when compared to other counties; in Australia health care is 8.9 percent, in United Kingdom 9.4 percent, in Canada 11.2 percent. If the American health care system were to hypothetically become its own economy, it would be the fifth-largest in the world. While these statistics sound troubling, they lead us to look for answers about the problems surrounding our system. The first health insurance company was created in the 1930s to give all American families an equal opportunity for hospital care and eventually led to a nationwide economic and social controversy that erupted in the 1990s and continued to be shaped by the government, insurance companies, doctors, and American citizens. In this paper, I will go in to detail about the various opinions regarding the controversy, the history behind health insurance companies, and the main dilemmas brought out by the health care crisis. Greedy insurance companies combined with high costs of doctor visits and pharmaceutical drugs or the inefficient hospitals all over America can only describe the beginning to this in depth crisis. Recently, the United States health care industry has become know for the outrageous costs of insurance models, developments of various social and health services programs, and the frequent changes in medicinal technology.

The dysfunction of the American health care system implies that not everyone has access to the right medication and medical treatment. Middle-class families and chronically ill patients do not always have access to health care, and when they do they do not receive adequate treatment with regards to hospitalization and medical services or quality of service. The lack of payment reform results in

Yet, our healthcare remain broken and threatens the financial well-being of America in the near future. At the conception of America’s healthcare system, the biggest issues concerning the management of American’s health were the methods of treatment, knowledge sharing among physicians and therapist, the lack of resources at the state and local level, and the true role of the Federal government. (Greg, 2010) The same issues haunt America’s healthcare system unto today. With healthcare cost growing more out of control, the question concerning how to best management America’s health has become increasingly relevant.

If there is one thing that most Americans are in agreement with, it is the vile shape of our U.S. health care system. There is no argument that the U.S. health care system is in need of an overhaul, however, there is much debate over just how to effectively go about the process. The public have voiced greatest concern in the health care areas of costs, quality and access. Many presidents have pondered the idea of health care reform; a few even made attempts to start the ball rolling. The first

The purpose of this paper is to review and discuss the current level of national healthcare expenditures and to determine if we as Americans are spending too much on healthcare. The author of this paper will provide examples and solutions where we as a nation should add or cut from the healthcare expenditures. This paper will also detail how the general public's healthcare needs are being paid for, the biggest economic healthcare challenge, why the challenge should be addressed, and how this challenge to be financed.

One of the contributors to the rising cost of Healthcare can be attributed to the over use of emergency departments (EDs) for non-emergency needs. In the greater Capitol/First/Beacon Hill area there are three major hospitals (Virginia Mason, Harborview, and Swedish) with emergency rooms and no urgent care centers with the exception of Group Health which is restricted to Group Health insurance members.

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”.

One policy that has changed the health care delivery to shift cost responsibility toward the hospital was the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982. This policy has changed hospital reimbursement under Medicare with the introduction of diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) (Sultz & Young, 2009). The DRG prospective payment system rewarded hospitals financially for efficient care (specifically shorter hospital stays) and reduced the incentive to consume (Sultz & Young, 2009). Another policy that placed the burden of responsibility on the hospital was the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 which required hospitals to provide care to everyone who presented in the emergency department regardless of ability to pay (Sultz & Young, 2009). This law was designed with good intent to reduce the “patient dumping” that had arisen from the DRG system, but it nevertheless

Substantial increases in health care costs has put significant strains on federal, state, and household budgets as well. Quality of health care varies widely, even after controlling for cost, patient preferences, and sources of payment (ATR, 2015). Many Americans lack health insurance coverage which also put a burden on the health care system itself, onto the consumers, and the tax payers as well.

Cost is a critical component of any health care system. Proper health care system ensures that a large part of the population can access good quality health care at low cost. If not well organized it might take a large part of national income and still not be able to serve a significant part of the population. The health care delivery system of United States is excellent compared to that of other countries; however, the health care alone takes 17% of gross domestic

US health care expenditures have been rising quickly over the past few years; it has risen more than the national financial system. Nonetheless a number of citizens in the US still lack appropriate health care. If the truth be told, health care expenditures are going to continue to increase; in addition numerous individuals will possibly have to make difficult choices pertaining to their health care. Our health system has grave problems that require reform, through reforming, there is optimism that there will be an increase in affordable health care and high-quality of care for America. Medicaid, Medicare and private sector insurances are all going through trials and tribulations because of