health insurance in the USA (Essay Sample)

Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Number November 13, 2021 Health Insurance in the United States Introduction In the United States, Healthcare is a very complicated system. All over the world healthcare facilities are in the hands of government or the private sector, however in the US the largest proportion of healthcare facilities are owned by private non-profit entities. The United States is the highest spender in the world when it comes to healthcare and the taxpayers fund this huge cost. Private insurers also cover a significant part of the HealthCare costs of individuals in the country. The United States’ healthcare system does not cater for the entire population and to make matters worse there is no unified system of health insurance in the country (Commonwealth fund n.p). Individuals rely on their employers who cover for their medical costs and those of their dependents. The government also has various programs which assist the elderly, the disabled and those economically disadvantaged in covering their healthcare expenses. Access to health insurance is not easy in the US and people have to be thorough so as to get the right health insurance cover (USA Gov 4). The United States does not cover all its citizens in its health insurance policies and it is not obligatory for US citizens to have health insurance. Whilst it is an optional thing, people are recommended to have a healthcare insurance cover because cost of treatment is very high in the country as compared to most countries across the world. The two types of health insurances in the United States are private and public health insurances. Individuals usually use both the types and under the public health insurance comes the Medicare, Medicaid and the children’s Health insurance program. Medicare is responsible for providing health care cover for all the country’s nationals who are above 65 years old and other young people with renal diseases and other form of disabilities (Medicare Gov n.p). The public health insurance program is divided into four stages namely; Part A which deals with cover in hospitals, and nursing skills. Then there is Part B which deals with all outpatient services and the corresponding charges. Then there is stage 3, which is part C which deals with permission for patients to select their preferred coverage and then Part D which deals with prescription drugs which can be self-administered. The second type of health insurance is the Medicaid which helps individuals who are limited in terms of income and medical cost resources and it has benefits not offered under Medicare such as personal care services (Currie 148). The Medicaid is the biggest funding source for health services for low income individuals. Then lastly there is the children’s health insurance program which covers children’s health insurances in families which have modest incomes and incomes which are not too low and fall under the Medicaid category. The second type of health insurance in the US is the private healthcare insurance. Private players offer different prices and different healthcare plans which all depend on one’s medical history. The three types of private healthcare insurance in the United States include the free-for-service health care (Wasem 19). This is a flexible plan for those who have high incomes. Then there is the health maintenance organization. This one has limited healthcare providers and cover costs of preventative care. Then lastly, there is the preferred provider organization which give individuals flexibility in service provider selection at low co-payments. Main Questions of the research Paper The research proposal will answer the following questions: * What are the benefits of Health Insurance to Americans * What is the general cost of health insurance to citizens * What are the available health insurance plans * Is health insurance easily accessible * Is Health insurance accessible to all Age groups and Gender * Is Health Insurance Portable with people’s lifestyles and standards of living Why this topic is interesting? This topic is interesting because there are a lot of things individuals can learn about health insurance. Most people actually believe that health insurance is for the rich only but there are several types of health insurances in the US which are meant for every social class. These have been outlined in the introduction as Medicare, Medicaid and children’s health insurance program. There is a lot to learn from the health insurance topic and the benefit it brings to the people rather than not being adequately covered against unexpected illnesses. Why the topic is relevant? * Health insurance topic is relevant because in light of rising cost of healthcare in the country individuals need to understand the consequences of having/ not having healthcare insurance. * The topic is also important among the elderly and even the young because some essential benefits can be obtained from having health insurance and these include maintenance of health and treatment of illnesses. * The topic is also relevant among those with low incomes because it protects them against unexpected high medical bills. * This topic is also relevant for people who suffer from chronic illnesses and other persistent disease because they get free preventative care, free screenings and regular check-ups for the general citizens. Policy Implications Healthcare costs are out of reach for several Americans. The cost of healthcare has continued to rise in the last 20 years and this has placed significant strains on individuals’ incomes and budgets. Healthcare insurance policies do not only affect the citizens’ disposable incomes but also their access to top quality healthcare services. The implications of ensuring that every single individual in the country is on health insurance are that a person’s overall health and safety is always guaranteed and this reduces the liability to both state governments and the citizens themselves especially those on low incomes. Literature Review Healthcare insurance in the United State involves any program which helps individuals pay for their medical expenses and this can be acquired privately or publicly. Other forms of acquiring healthcare insurance can be through social insurance, paid for insurance and social welfare programs all which are fully funded by the government. Health insurance thus covers individuals against unexpected medical costs and some of the usages of health insurance are private whereby resources are pooled together and the financial risk is spread across the entire population. Since 2013, half of American citizens had no health insurance and that is why the affordable care act of 2010 has been trying to improve access to health insurance to those who are not policy holders. However, this has failed to be adequate as the cost of healthcare and medical insurance has continued to skyrocket. The key literature in this research paper will include one on the benefits of health insurance to Americans. Health insurance is important because it gives financial protection to individuals in the event of serious accidents and illnesses (Healthcare Gov, 2018). Therefore, health insurance can help in protecting against unexpected high medical costs. For instance, it costs an estimated $7,500 to repair a broken leg. This journal further states that if people are on health insurance then they get good access to preventive schemes which include vaccine shots and screenings at zero cost. This is very important for one’s well-being and health. Health insurance also improves one’s savings because insurance is less expensive as compared to footing medical bills in cash. One can also get a policy which depends with their average incomes. Healthcare costs are a major cause for concern in the US because they are higher than in any other developed country. Government spending on healthcare alone has been well above 30% of the budget. The country has been spending twice as much as 10 developed countries in the world on medical expenses alone. However, the outcome has not been commensurate with the costs. Healthcare costs have been escalating because of increased labor costs in the healthcare field, and there are high administration costs in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector (Papanicolas n.p). These have been the major drives of high medical costs in the US. There are basically two types of health insurances in the country and these are public and private health insurance. Public health insurance is a healthcare program which is run by the federal or state governments whereby all costs are paid for by the state. Public health insurance can also be subdivided further into Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare ensures that all people who are above the age of 65 years and those with major disabilities can receive healthcare for free at federal health level (Visa guide world, n.d). On the other hand Medicaid is for individuals and families who have low incomes and live with disabilities. Then there is private health insurance which is health coverage offered by private entities instead of governments. For example, insurance brokers and companies (Garrow 8). This is usually more expensive as compared to public health insurance. Another key literature will be on accessibility of healthcare insurance by all races, gender and age. Many experts have argued over the years that the Healthcare system in the US is broken. High costs of healthcare have prevented accessibility to both health insurance and healthcare costs. Over 50 million US nationals do not have a healthcare insurance policy and this is about 16% of the nation’s population (Chemweno n.p). Barriers to information and lack of high quality infrastructure in rural America has also been a major driver in lack of access to quality healthcare insurance (Wheel team n.p). This work will contribute to e...