Health Care System in the US
Pro and Cons of the Current Health Care System
Health care delivery has significantly improved in the recent past. Some of the noticeable improvements include easy access to health care and improved public health. In the past, hospitals and health institutions were scarce, but new ones have been built in nearly all parts of the US territory. These hospitals are fully equipped with medical facilities and health professionals. However, patients continue to face challenges while trying to access health care services. Unlike other developed countries, the current health care system in the US is relatively more expensive. Most US citizens are either uninsured or underinsured. Notably, most rural residents have lesser chances of accessing health insurance and are less likely to receive doctor visits. More badly, studies have reported that poor health access has been greatly attributed to racism, socioeconomic circumstance, and immigration status. As a result, there is a great need to develop a new, improved health care system that aims to address these health disparities.
Vision and Benefits for the New Health Care System
Affordable health care is a basic necessity for all human beings. Given this, the new health care system seeks to ensure that there is equal and fair access to medical care to all US citizens without discrimination. Through the new system, the less privileged citizens will be able to access quick medical assistance at an affordable fee. Any medical professional who will be caught unfairly discriminating against any patient due to race, sex, or financial status will face disciplinary action. After all, no human life is more important than the other. Also, the issues brought about by insurance companies will be addressed with the aim of ensuring that all US citizens will be fully insured. With the new health system, no citizen will end up bankrupt because of medical bills as the insurance cover will cater to all types of illnesses, whether long-term or short-term.
Financing the New Health Care System
Financing the new universal health care system requires everyone’s contribution. The primary financers of the system will be the government. The US government funds health care through several programs such as Medicaid and Medicare. Through proper medical evaluation, the federal government will increase its funding to ensure that it covers the growing needs in the health care sector. After all, a healthy nation improves the working-class abilities to deliver in their work leading to more production of goods and services, hence more taxes. Moreover, the government must ensure that all the funds set aside for the health docket are prudently spent to avoid the current instances of spending on unwanted needs. Wastages should not be entertained at all. Additionally, employers must also cater for some health expenses for their employees through private health insurance plans. More importantly, individual citizens must also join hands with the government, employers, and well-wishers in taking care of their hospital bills using their own funds.
Costs Control
The US should learn from other developed nations that utilize far less money and still manage to have better healthcare services. To avoid overburdening the suffering health care system, the Department of Health and Human Services must spend its money on the appropriate needs when the need arises. Importantly, the funds set aside for health care should be channeled towards social services that help prevent diseases from occurring and promote wellness, rather than waiting for a potentially expensive disease to treat to develop. For instance, the National Health Foundation recently released a report highlighting some commendable cost savings that have been attained by the use of programs that utilize specialized centers to give housing services to homeless patients who are not ill enough to get admitted to hospitals. Notably, these centers provide homeless patients with a neat and secure place to heal and get much-needed medical assistance. A new finance manager whose primary responsibility is to manage the new health care system’s cost controls will be appointed.
Monitoring Performance and Quality
The effectiveness of the new health care system will be evaluated and determined through several measures. First, patients will be encouraged to give out their personal experiences after using the new, improved system. For example, a patient may be asked to fill a short satisfaction survey questionnaire about the care he or she has received. Also, the rate of readmissions will be closely monitored as another measure of monitoring performance and quality. Readmissions are costly and mostly unwanted. Low rates of readmissions will suggest that the system is serving its real purpose. Similarly, the mortality rate will also serve as the health system outcome measure. Low mortality rate will suggest that health care delivery is getting better and better. On the other hand, the new health care system will allow for a system and secure introduction of new treatment plans and drugs. Introducing a new treatment plan is a highly delicate exercise that requires total approval from all relevant sectors.