The high costs of health care system emanating from advancement in technology are the primary problem of healthcare in the United States. Ideally, the U.S. health care system is in shackles and devastation especially because the escalating insurance and healthcare costs brought about by technology has led to inaccessibility of health related services. American health care providers are highly skilled and utilize advanced technologies in conducting treatment. The present healthcare payment model in place consists of a blend of private insurers and public programs each of which imposes different regulations and legislations and payment algorithms. Consequently, this not only contributes to waste of resources but also adds onto the administrative costs ( ). Although the United States has one of the best healthcare systems in the world, it is nevertheless one of the most expensive. Looking at the mortality rate, the U.S. still has high mortality amenable to health care per 100,000 population of 19 countries. The high cost of healthcare has been the reason why savings has been stifled as millions of Americans are yet to be insured.
Statistically, healthcare costs in the year 2009-2010 accounted for about 17.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and it is estimated that the costs will have escalated to about 25 percent of GDP by the year 2025. The main reason why healthcare costs are expensive in the United States is that of the use of advanced technologies as well as the surge in insurance costs ( ). Health care providers are compensated for each procedure and not for the outcome of attention. While seeking medical treatment, patients are subjected to a variety of services including services with unnecessary procedures and all these come along with a bill. However, it is good to note that increased costs do not necessarily imply high quality.
Technology in healthcare helps improve healthcare quality plus assure the effectiveness of the system. Moreover, technology also helps process information. Through advanced computing devices, analysis and decision making is enhanced, and when valuable and accurate patient information is used, health care is improved immensely.
What can be done to address the issues described?
It goes without saying that there is need to lower the healthcare costs without compromising on the quality. Adoption and implementation of reforms such as Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are paramount. The future of healthcare in the United States is determined by technology, ethical challenges as well as global factors affecting health. Legislators and administrator should adopt an Affordable Care Act which offers an opportunity for transforming and reforming the system for patients to access the right care at the right time coordinated collaboratively and efficiently. Moreover, by adopting the healthcare reforms, a new Medicare and Medicaid innovation which assures the safety, quality as well as cost-effectiveness of the healthcare system.