Healthcare Financing
Part One
Proper healthcare is vital to every individual. Therefore, most Americans ensure that they easily pay and obtain their healthcare services in time. However, the USA records the highest healthcare costs in the world; this makes it uneconomical for low-income individuals and households to access quality healthcare in the United States. There are various factors that contribute to higher healthcare costs in the USA. Administrative costs greatly contribute to the high costs because healthcare institutions spend more on payments and billings rather than on the provision of medicine, services, and supplies. The USA also averagely spends more on doctors’ salaries and purchase of drugs compared to other countries; this significantly contributes to the higher healthcare costs in the United States (O’Rourke et al.).
Additionally, the fact that Americans tend to seek and acquire more healthcare services compared to other countries also contributes to higher healthcare costs. More healthcare access means a blend of more specialists and high per-capita income, among other factors. The other reason for the high healthcare costs is the fact that the U.S. government makes lesser interventions to reduce medical costs compared to other countries. For instance, the USA accounts for 48% of the medical bills compared to the 76% that is catered for in Europe. Also, with the increase in the aging population, the healthcare cost also increases; this is because older people required more specialized equipment that is expensive (Milstead, and Short).
The current regime of President Trump and the previous two of President Obama and Bush have al faced this challenge of healthcare financing. Each President has tried to develop new plans and policies in attempts to curb this problem. President Trump, in his first term, focused on amending Obamacare in attempts to reduce the cost of healthcare. In a plan dubbed the name ‘American Patients First,’ President Trump focuses on reforming the amount paid to Pharmacy managers by drug companies; this is aimed at reducing healthcare costs. The approach also required healthcare providers to disclose the cost of medical care to ensure Americans get access to cheap and affordable health care. President Trump also attempts to set the drug prices to be lower than the prices at the international level; this aims at reducing the healthcare cost in the USA while limiting drug purchases overseas. Also, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act signing by President Trump, repealed Obamacare tax hence ensuring cheap medical cost for the uninsured (Demarco, and Tufts).
Healthcare reforms under the regime of President Obama can be summarised by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. Commonly referred to as Obamacare, the Act aimed at improving the quality healthcare of the American citizens. Obamacare was founded on three laws that shaped its agenda. One was improving the affordability of healthcare, then expanding the Medicaid program to cover the low-income earning Americans, and lastly, supporting all innovative and inventive medical care that is aimed at reducing healthcare costs. The operation fully commenced in 2014, and led to a 50% reduction in the healthcare costs of those uninsured; this significantly contributed to the affordability of healthcare services in the country (Milstead, and Short).
On the other hand, President Bush contributed significantly to the affordability of healthcare services because he believed that it was the main issue facing the USA healthcare system. As a result, President Bush developed various ways aimed at making healthcare affordable. First, Bush reformed Medicare, where he added prescription drugs as a form of benefit; this allowed over 40million individuals to have affordable access to healthcare. Likewise, President Bush enhanced competition and choices by stabilizing and expanding various private sectors; the result realized was more people seeking medical insurance to cover their medical bills (O’Rourke et al.).
Part Two
The issue of healthcare financing can be best addressed by the Centre for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) agencies. Also, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) agency can also be tasked with the responsibility of addressing the issue of healthcare financing. Although the current President has to strive hard to create an affordable healthcare system, numerous Americans still fail to access quality healthcare due to high medical costs. To improve this situation, the government needs to be granted more power to reduce the payment of hospitals and doctors in order to reduce healthcare costs. Medicare and Medicaid also need to be improved to ensure that they are effective at reducing healthcare costs through the single-player concept (Demarco, and Tufts).
One of the reasons for the high healthcare costs in the U.S. can be attributed to Medicaid and Medicare fraud. Through stronger legal measures and penalties, this fraud can be eliminated from the healthcare systems hence reducing the cost of seeking healthcare services. The use of sophisticated medical technology has also significantly contributed to the higher medical costs; therefore, to reduce the cost of healthcare, this technology needs to be improved to eliminate errors and encourage efficiency. The introduction of bundled payments in the healthcare system will also greatly help reduce healthcare costs because it limits the cost of medical care while ensuring quality (Milstead, and Short).
Part Three
Healthcare financing is essential because it ensures that every citizen has equal access to quality healthcare. The Affordable Care Act has been very crucial in the provision of affordable healthcare services to Americans. ACA has increased the number of insured Americans; this has helped improve the overall access to healthcare services. Since the introduction of the ACA, over 20million Americans have received insurance coverage. The insured are more likely to receive preventive healthcare services compared to those uninsured; this means that it is very crucial to invest in healthcare financing. Also, those insured are more likely to seek emergency medical treatment compared to those uninsured hence allowing more survival rate to those insured in case of emergencies(Demarco and Tufts).
The rise in healthcare costs negatively affects the U.S. economy; this is because it reduces the federal deficit and reduces the ability of the nation to spend in other crucial sectors of the economy. Therefore, this makes other vital sectors such as education, economic development, and housing to lag behind. However, with the introduction of the ACA, healthcare costs have reduced significantly hence leading to a growth in other crucial sectors of the economy. The healthcare inequalities realized as a result of unequal income has been significantly reduced through the introduction of healthcare financing options that are aimed at reducing healthcare costs. Nurses are regarded as pivotal in the healthcare sector because they have direct contact with patients, and therefore they can conduct a successful survey on healthcare financing and affordable healthcare services. Nurses are also tasked with the responsibility of providing feedback on patients’ attitudes towards healthcare costs (Burlington).
Works Cited
Burlington, M.A. “Information Public Policy: An Important Role For Registered Nurses.” 2016, pp. 11-13.
Demarco, R, and K.A Tufts. “The Mechanics Of Writing A Policy Brief.” Nursing Outlook, vol 62, no. 3, 2014, pp. 219-224.
Milstead, J.A, and N.M. Short. “Health Policy And Politics.” A Nurses’ Guide, vol 6, 2019.
O’Rourke, N.C et al. “Political Efficacy And Participation Of Nurse Practitioners.”. Policy, Politics And Nursing Practice, vol 18, no. 3, 2017, pp. 135-148.