The United States Health Care System

Universal health care coverage is a dream that the majority of Americans have had for many decades. It seemed that the dream could become a reality with a major effort under the Clinton administration in the mid 1990’s. This effort was spearheaded by the First Lady, Hillary Clinton, and would have established a universal health care system for the entire nation. Unfortunately, after years of work, the effort ended in failure due to trying to modernize and finance universal health care at the same time (Rodwin, 2003). When the current President, Barack Obama, campaigned in 2008, one of his cornerstone promises was to develop a healthcare system that would assure affordable healthcare for all Americans through the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obama Care. With only a slight majority of democrats in the Senate and a large majority of Republicans in the House, this would prove to be an uphill battle (Moore, 2014).

The first characteristic of the US health care system is that there is no central governing agency which allows for little integration and coordination. While the government has a great influence on the health care system, the system is mostly controlled through private hands. The system is financed publically and privately creating a variety of payments and delivery unlike centrally controlled healthcare systems in other developed countries. The US system is more complex and less manageable than centrally controlled health care systems, which makes it more expensive. The second characteristic of the US health care system is that it is technology driven and focuses on acute care. With more usage of high technology,

While campaigning for the 2016 presidential election, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont proposed that America should adopt a single-payer health care system. In Sanders’s plan, there would have been only one insurance program that would have covered everyone in the United States; in effect, other programs such as Medicaid, Medicare, and especially private insurance would be discontinued (Holahan, 2016, p. 1). If Sanders’s proposal were to be carried out, it would be a drastic change from the current system which predominately comprises of private insurance and hospitals under limited government regulations. The debate reopened on whether or not a single-payer system would be an effective system health care system or economically viable. Due to the contrasting nature of current health care system in the United States, policymakers should approach proposals of single-payer health care systems with caution and an understanding of the benefits and the drawbacks by examining the successes and failures of real-world systems.

President Barack Obama has been written into the history books for becoming the first African American president of the United States. The president plans on changing history again by bringing universal health care into the United States, which has won him much popularity among Democratic voters. His fans adore his speeches but raise many red flags for the majority of America. Major concerns Americans have with President Obama’s two proposed health-care bills are that health-care options will no longer be available along with the real cost of Obamacare, and small businesses. As many Americans believe Presidents Obama’s health-care plan is what the United States has needed for decades, considering he did get elected, his polices will prove to be a nuisance for the United States.

During the 2008 presidential campaign, Presidential Candidate Barak Obama, used national health care reform as a topic of concern during his campaign. Obama made a promise throughout his campaigning that he would ensure that all Americans will have heath care insurance. The reason for the Affordable Care Act movement was the ever increasing cost of health care and insurance premiums. Another reason supported by Young Rock Hong, a PhD student and graduate assistant at the University of Florida, “The purpose of health insurance is to facilitate sufficient access to health care, and to protect individuals as well as family members from the financial burden, especially associated with catastrophic illness” (1). Health care

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”.

For over a decade our healthcare system has been flawed, and for over a decade several Presidents have tried to reform the health industry with little success. Advocates of health care reform have been met with great controversy and resistance since as early as 1854 when President Franklin Pierce vetoed the “Land-Grant Bill for Indigent Insane Persons” that would benefit the indigent insane, “by arguing that the federal government should not commit itself to social welfare, which he believed was properly the responsibility of the states” ("Senate Debates On the Land-Grant Bill for Indigent Insane, 1854). Those apposed to change have fought diligently to cease the passing of any

The paper is broken up in to three sections. In section one, we will discuss the problems with the American Healthcare system and we will try and clear up some of the often misrepresented facts about the healthcare problems and solutions to fix them. In section two, we will present some of the solutions being put forward to fix the healthcare system, including plans by both Presidential Candidates

It is highly visible that the United States lacks an affordable, universal health care plan. Compared to other countries America is lagging behind. The improvement of access to care has become of high importance to the betterment of society and the country’s health care outcome. This paper will describe the three major problems that exist in the United States health care. In addition, it will explore the proposed health care plans of two 2016 presidential candidates and the position they take in regards the big issues.

In this article released on 24th September 2017, the author shows that Bernie Sanders has worked extra hard to fight for reform for the Medicare Bill. He opts for a single-payer system that will scrap the multiple medical insurers and paralyze the ACA. Sanders argues that such a shift will be a perfect fit for managing healthcare organizations in America. He is confident that the technique stands to be more durable and fruitful because it focuses on the overall well-being of all patients. Based on recent reports, the proposition has gained 5% more supporters since January this year making a total of 35% of the American Public (Galea, 2017). It is from this idea that Colleen M. Flood and Allan Rock writes to outline five main

While the American people have still yet to hear a full-blown proposal, some of the only information on a Trump healthcare system is that he plans to allow healthcare insurers to compete across state lines. In the latest CNN Republican Debate, Trump stated, “When you get rid of the lines, it brings in competition. So instead of having one insurance company taking care of New York or Texas, you’ll have many. They’ll compete. And it will be a beautiful thing.” Trump’s healthcare plan is lacking many details, and it will need quite a few more ideas that are brought forward if he wants us to covet his healthcare ideas as much as he does. As previously mentioned, Bernie Sanders is an advocate for Universal health care coverage as well. Sanders’ proposal is much more detailed, and many of his backers love it. Sanders claims, “I believe that the U.S. should do what every other major country on Earth is doing, and that is, guarantee health care to all people as a right." To pay for this, Sanders wants to raise the federal income tax by 2.2% and charge employers 6.2% of their payroll (Kodjak). However, economists believe this just will not cover the hefty bill this would lay on the government. "I 'm not sure the numbers add up, but the aspirations add up,” says Jared

U.S. health care reform is currently one of the most heavily discussed topics in health discourse and politics. After former President Clinton’s failed attempt at health care reform in the mid-1990s, the Bush administration showed no serious efforts at achieving universal health coverage for the millions of uninsured Americans. With Barack Obama as the current U.S. President, health care reform is once again a top priority. President Obama has made a promise to “provide affordable, comprehensive, and portable health coverage for all Americans…” by the end of his first term (Barackobama.com). The heated debate between the two major political parties over health care reform revolves around how to pay for it and more importantly, whether it

With the rising worries of healthcare cost and the adaption of the AFfordable Care Act (ACA), the debate of healthcare is growing across party lines. Even before senator and former Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders introduced his bill “Medicare for All” that largely sparked the debate in the media for universal healthcare, the left has been looking for certain policy changes to aid in decreasing the amount of uninsured in the US. “Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has also said ‘next step is single payer’ when it comes to the Democrats’ health-care ambitions,” (the atlantic quote) A growing sentiment among Democratic politicians, and citizens in general, is that the government should provide insurance for everyone, and that access is healthcare is now an right.

2016 is the year of presidential election which makes all Americans look forward to better life. In the meantime, the two Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, have been promoting many positive ideas to enhance the economy, cut off the social problems, and build a better life for all Americans. Nevertheless, during the debates, two candidates have some significantly different proposals. One of the proposals is regarding health care coverage. With expensive medical prescription costs in the U.S., Clinton supports the Affordable Care Act like Obama Care, which helps people attain health coverage for a reasonable price, while Bernie Sander proposes, “a single payer for all Americans”, which implies that all Americans will

“We will pass reform that lowers cost, promotes choice, and provides coverage that every American can count on. And we will do it this year.” The preceding is a powerful statement from the newly elected President Barak Obama. One of the main aspects of both political campaigns was health care reform. The above quote shows passion and encouragement, but the quotes about health care do not end there. Georgian republican gubernatorial candidate and health care policy maker John Oxendine expressed: “Their proposal would virtually devastate the private healthcare sector in this country along with competition and patient choice, by replacing it with bureaucratic planning and government control. The result of this plan and its one trillion