1. Discussion Of Health Care System Essay Paper
Discussion Of Health Care System Essay PaperIn the current U.S. health care system, is
health care a right or a privilege?Although health care is listed as a basic human right, it is a
privilege in the current US health care system. That is because although the Affordable Care
Act has led to an increase in health care coverage with expanded programs that allow many
people to obtain health care insurance, there are many more who are left without health
insurance coverage. This makes it clear that health care is not available to everyone in the
USA and that those without health insurance coverage are likely to be without health care
(Bauchner, Fontanarosa & Maddox, 2021)Discussion Of Health Care System Essay
Paper.How do you think social determinants of health and health disparities impact the U.S.
health care system?Social determinants of health and health disparities have an impact on
the US health care system. In fact, they have an effect on the health outcomes of populations,
particularly vulnerable populations. Factors such as a patient’s environment, income level
and education must be considered when providing care and treatment. Besides that, the
social determines are linked to health outcomes. For instance, poverty (as a social
determinant) can inhibit access to safe neighborhoods and healthy foods, with significant
impacts on health. Similarly, higher education levels can result in better health through
higher knowledge levels that allow the individual to have knowledge of and adopt healthy
behaviors. The social determinants and health disparities are influencing health care
systems through connecting health care provision to and integrating social services and
supports (Gómez et al., 2021)Discussion Of Health Care System Essay Paper.ORDER YOUR
PAPER HEREAs you explore the Kaiser website and review the visuals, think about your
practice area. How are the seven key drivers impacting your practice setting?The seven
factors identified by Appleby (2012) are key drivers in the practice setting. First,
reimbursement rules have increased efficiency so that providers are paid for quality rather
than quantity. This has reduced the cost of health care. Second, the population is growing
older, sicker and fatter. This means that more people are seeking health care services on a
regular basis. Third, advances in health care means that more people are seeking the newer
technologies that cost more, even if there is no proof that they would be more effective.
Fourth, there are tax breaks for health insurance, and this allows more people to have
health insurance thereby making it possible for them to pay for health care. Fifth, there is a
lot of information that makes it difficult for decision making on what works best. Sixth,
hospitals and other medical organizations are being operated as business entities that must
watch the financial bottom line. Seventh, like other businesses, hospitals experience supply
2. and demand problems. Low supply of medical supply results in the available personnel
demanding higher pays even as they do more work (Appleby, 2012)Discussion Of Health
Care System Essay Paper.ReferencesAppleby, J. (2012, Oct. 24). Seven Factors Driving Up
Your Health Care Costs. https://khn.org/news/health-care-costs/Bauchner, H.,
Fontanarosa, P. A., & Maddox, K. J. (2021). Health Care Is a Right, Not a PrivilegeA New
Series on US Health Care and Health Policy. JAMA, 325, 227-228.
https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.23915Gómez, C. A., Kleinman, D. V., Pronk, N., Wrenn-
Gordon, G. L., Ochiai, E., … & Brewer, K. H. (2021). Addressing Health Equity and Social
Determinants of Health Through Healthy People 2030. Journal of Public Health
Management and Practice, 27, S249-S257.
https://doi.org/10.1097/PHH.000000000000129Discussion Of Health Care System Essay
PaperDiscussion TopicTop of FormRead Seven Factors Driving Up Your Health Care Costs
on the Kaiser Health News site to learn about some of the contributing factors in increasing
health care costs.Respond to the following in a minimum of 175 words:In the current U.S.
health care system, is health care a right or a privilege?How do you think social
determinants of health and health disparities impact the U.S. health care system?As you
explore the Kaiser website and review the visuals, think about your practice area. How are
the seven key drivers impacting your practice setting? Discussion Of Health Care System
Essay PaperSupport your stance with two scholarly peer reviewed articles. Seven Factors
Driving Up Your Health Care CostsBy Julie ApplebyOCTOBER 24, 2012This story was
produced in collaboration withThere is no one villain in the battle against rising health care
costs. Currently, the United States spends more on health care services than any other
country, exceeding $2.6 trillion, or about 18 percent of gross domestic product. Most years,
medical spending rises faster than inflation and the economy as a whole. Many factors —
and nearly everyone — contributes to those increases.Here are seven ways you or your
medical providers play a role, based on a recent report from the Bipartisan Policy Center, a
think tank in Washington, D.C. Discussion Of Health Care System Essay Paper1. We pay our
doctors, hospitals and other medical providers in ways that reward doing more, rather than
being efficient.Most insurers — including traditional Medicare — pay doctors, hospitals and
other medical providers under a fee-for-service system that reimburses for each test,
procedure or visit. Coupled with a medical system that is not integrated, this encourages
overtreatment, including repetitive tests, the report says. New efforts in the federal health
law and among some private insurers aim to move payments toward a flat rate for a specific
condition, such as a knee replacement, or for a patient’s entire episode of care, in order to
streamline costs. Medical systems and doctors are also looking to electronic medical records
as a way to improve coordination and reduce unnecessary, repeated tests.2. We’re growing
older, sicker and fatter.As we get older, we tend to need more medical care. The baby boom
generation is heading into retirement, with enrollment in Medicare set to grow by an
average of 1.6 million people annually. Additionally, nearly half the U.S. population has one
or more chronic conditions, among them asthma, heart disease or diabetes, which drive up
costs. And two-thirds of adults are either overweight or obese, which can also lead to
chronic illness and additional medical spending Discussion Of Health Care System Essay
Paper3. We want new drugs, technologies, services and procedures.Medical advances can
3. help us get well, avoid disease and delay death, but they also drive up spending. Much new
technology comes on the market after being tested only for safety or whether the new
treatment is comparable to existing ones or even placebos. Patients and doctors often
demand the newest treatments, even if there is little or no evidence that they are better.
Prices for newer treatments are often higher than for the products they replace.4. We get
tax breaks on buying health insurance — and the cost to patients of seeking care is often
low.The majority of people with insurance get it through their jobs. The amount employers
pay toward coverage is tax deductible for the firm and tax exempt to the worker, thus
encouraging more expensive health plans with richer benefits, the report says. How that
coverage is designed also plays a role: Low deductibles or small office co-payments can
encourage overuse of care, the report says. Increasingly, however, employers are moving
toward high-deductible coverage as a way to slow premium growth and require workers to
pay more toward the cost of care Discussion Of Health Care System Essay
PaperVideo: Three Major Themes In U.S. Health Care SpendingKaiser Health News senior
correspondent Julie Appleby examines the factors driving the $2.6 trillion in annual health
care spending in the U.S. Watch the video.5. We don’t have enough information to make
decisions on which medical care is best for us.While medical journals, the Internet and the
popular press are awash in health information and studies, professionals and patients find
there is no broad standard for evaluating individual treatments, or how specific treatments
compare with others. Even when evidence shows a treatment isn’t effective, or is potentially
harmful, it can take a long time for that information to actually change how doctors practice
or what patients demand, the report says. Additionally, Americans vary widely in how they
view end-of- life issues, with some desiring every possible medical intervention to stave off
death in every situation, no matter how small the possibility of success.6. Our hospitals and
other providers are increasingly gaining market share and are better able to demand higher
prices.While mergers or partnerships among medical providers or insurers may improve
efficiency and help drive down prices, consolidation can also have the opposite effect,
allowing near-monopolies in some markets and driving up prices, the report says.
Increasingly, hospitals are buying up rivals and directly employing physicians, creating
larger medical systems Discussion Of Health Care System Essay Paper7. We have supply and
demand problems, and legal issues that complicate efforts to slow spending.Malpractice
premiums and jury awards are part of what drives spending. A larger problem, although
hard to quantify, is “defensive medicine” — when doctors prescribe unnecessary tests or
treatment out of fear of facing a lawsuit, the report says. Fraudulent billing or unnecessary
tests by medical providers seeking to “game the system” are another concern.Finally, the
report notes that state laws sometimes limit the ability of nurse practitioners or other
medical professionals, who are paid less than doctors, to fully perform work for which they
are trained. The U.S. faces a shortage of primary care doctors, so more advanced practice
nurses and others will be needed to help care for patients who gain insurance coverage
under the federal health law. Conversely, the U.S. has a higher ratio of specialists than other
countries, which can serve to drive up spending. Specialists have more advanced training
than primary care doctors, and are paid far more Discussion Of Health Care System Essay
Paper.
