John Q. Played By Denzel Washington Writing Assignment (Essay Sample)

John Q. Played by Denzel Washington
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John Q, played by Denzel Washington, is a movie that details the issue currently facing the American healthcare system. The main health policy issues is the lack of sufficient insurance cover to ensure that individual can be assisted when they need medical assistance. Essentially, the movie has been effective in provoking a healthcare debate as many people within the population often end dying since they do not have sufficient health cover to deal with all ailments. John’s son is ailing from a heart condition that required a transplant. However, the healthcare policy does not cover all the costs of the surgery, and John does not have the finances. Indeed, it means that the patient will die even though he is covered by a healthcare policy CITATION Kar09 \l 1033 (Lundy & Janes, 2009). The film details how poor people in the society will often lack quality health services due to lack of finances or sufficient health cover. John is a metalworker from Illinois. He has many bills to cover, and the recession has made the economic conditions worse.
Stakeholders
There are several stakeholders present and missing in the movie who have an interest in the healthcare policy. The primary stakeholder present in the film is John and his son. Mainly, the healthcare policy is formulated to cater to the needs of the general population in which John belongs to. In this case, Joh expects that the healthcare policy will prove sufficient support for both himself and his family, but this is not the case. The medical staff in the film are also major stakeholders in the health policy. They are involved in the provision of services, and the needs of the policy directly affect them. However, thy have no power on whether the patient can receive treatment since if they cannot afford, then the medical personnel will have to let go of the patient CITATION Cha152 \l 1033 (Weaver, Ball, Kim, & Kiel, 2015). For instance, the healthcare personnel suggested that John should take his son home, as they could not provide any assistance. In this case, even though the hospital has the necessary equipment, skills, and resources to offer assistance, they cannot do so since John does not have adequate insurance cover CITATION Dav071 \l 1033 (Shore, 2007).
Politicians also comprise significant stakeholders even though they are not present in the film. The politicians are part of the legislature that is tasked with the formulation of health policies. Essentially, the politicians can be in consensus and conflict with the rest of the stakeholders. Consensus arises when the politicians make policies that are favorable and fair to all parties involved, in particular for the medical personnel and patients who are affected by the health policies. However, a major source of conflict arises since the current policies are not effective. John is desperate, as he does not have sufficient resources due to the health cover that does not consider his specific needs. Additionally, there is a lack of consensus between the patients and healthcare providers. It arises from the fact that the medical personnel cannot provide medical assistance even though they have the necessary resources CITATION Kar09 \l 1033 (Lundy & Janes, 2009). This is a reason why John holds the medical personnel as hostages until they provide medical assistance. His choice bears fruit as his son is considered as a priority on the donor list. It ensures that his son will not lose his life.
The health insurance companies are also part of the major stakeholders in the film. John sought to change his insurance provider due to costs. A source of conflict arises where John is unable to pay for the premiums for previous insurance providers, and he picks an option that will not be sufficient to him. In the film, John changed his health insurance cover to HMO from a previous provider that was more expensive CITATION Dav071 \l 1033 (Shore, 2007). The firm changed the health insurance cover due to the recession. The new cover also pays about a maximum $20,000 to cater to health cost. However, the heart transplant will require about $260,000 that is not within John’s limits. Essentially, this becomes a source of conflict between John and the care provider.
Impact
The current health policy, essentially in regards to healthcare cover, affects practice in the hospital. In the current context, the hospital administrators often prioritize patients who have finances to cater to their healthcare costs. They would rather assist profitable patients rather than working class individuals who pay cash. Even though John tried to raise sufficient finances for his son’s transplant, he is not fortunate CITATION Dav071 \l 1033 (Shore, 2007). In this case, the health policy affects health practice, as many people will lack appropriate healthcare services if they do not have sufficient finances. Moreover, it makes healthcare services very expensive for many. It leads to a decline in healthcare, as many people cannot access healthcare.
The high costs of healthcare also mean that poor people will often ignore healthcare services. They would rather remain sick instead of using their limited finances on healthcare. It creates an issue, as people will be late in accessing medical interventions. By then, their heath would have declined to a point that it is expensive to access the required health services, or they would easily lose their lives CITATION Kar09 \l 1033 (Lundy & Janes, 2009).
In the US, over 35 million Americans lack health insurance cover. Moreover, the health sector is a national issue as many individual lacks adequate over. It leads to risk in the population. The mortality and morbidity rates in the US are quite low when the country is ranked internationally. The rural poor and inner city residents have health conditions that are comparable to the third world countries. The cause of the issues facing the US healthcare system will not entail a complicated diagnosis. In the country, healthcare has often been considered as a commodity instead of a fundamental human right. It means that many people cannot access health services unless they have the resources CITATION Mar021 \l 1033 (Kelly, 2002). Health is comparable to an individual who goes to a local store to make a purchase. You will find products with different prices, and it becomes difficult to buy a good quality product unless you have the finances.
Healthcare is costly. However, education is also expensive, but it is regarded as a public benefit and human right. In this case, universal education is considered as a social right, but this is not the same case with a surgical procedure that will prevent loss of life. The political debates in the US about healthcare often focus on cost, cost reduction, and delivery models. These discussion...