Evolution of the Problem (Essay Sample)

Evolution of the Problem
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Introduction
The issue of financial crisis is one that cannot be undermined as patient and healthcare organization get to face the effects with sometimes severe impacts being realized such as death of patients. It can cloud the mission, vision, and objectives of healthcare institutions. Before coming up with measures to combat this problem and the negatives impacts coming from it, its causes have to be identified first. In this way prevention of the same in the future will be possible and an approach to solve the crisis presently would be easy to choose. In this paper, the potential causes of the financial crisis specific to healthcare will be evaluated and possible solutions recommended.
Discussion
The United States healthcare system is operating under a certain irony. Despite the big share of the federal budget being allocated to healthcare annually, a third of the healthcare providers in the nation operate in the red and another third are barely able to stay afloat. There are some general assumptions that can be made such as mismanagement of funds both in the health institutions and at the state level. However, a critical look into the healthcare system reveals that an aging baby boom population, an increase in the number of uninsured Americans and inadequate payment systems in government aid programs are more distinct elements causing the equation of the financial crisis (PRN Funding, 2011).
Baby-boomers continue to get older as well as live longer to a point that studies reveal that 20% of the American population will be in the oldest adult segment by 2050 (PRN Funding, 2011). As a result of this surge, an influx in the nation’s healthcare system is created due to the increased need for services in treating and managing acute and chronic conditions in elderly individuals.
When healthcare insurance premiums rise, some employers become unable to provide their employees with health insurance (Maciosek, 1994). Whether insured or not, hospital emergency rooms do not discriminate therefore any patient walking through their doors is expected to be helped. Providing medical care to a patient that is uninsured means that their bill will be footed by the hospital.
Most of the unemployed Americans living in poverty together with the retired elderly adult population rely completely on federal healthcare programs in paying medical bills (Foy and Stransky, 2009). These healthcare programs pay for the medical procedures that these people would otherwise not have been able t pay for. The problem comes in the payment speed as the federally funded programs tend to pay slowly therefore leaving the hospitals and nursing homes with the burden of taking the financial hit.
One approach to solving this problem is engaging key players in the initiative to eliminate the financial crisis. The state, the federal government, and healthcare organizations are the key players in this context (Leading opinion, 2000). For the most part healthcare organizations are playing their part and sometimes taking on other’s responsibility as seen in the case of federal healthcare programs being slow to pay medical bills. One way that the state can play their part is by providing health insurance that is of low cost. The federal government can ensure that hospitals gain a financial foothold and that federal healthcare programs pay the necessary medical funds on time. Increased transparency in the hospital management is also recommendable so that mismanagement of funds in the institutions can be curbed.
Conclusion
The financial crisis affecting healthcare organizations and patients has its roots in mismanagement of funds, the high number of uninsured Americans, baby boom population living into older age and inadequate payment systems in the federal healthcare programs of the government. The key players have a responsibility to each play their part and eliminate the financial crisis.