- According to an article by Kane, the average American spends $8,233 per year on health care. This number is easily greater than what Europeans spend and clearly more than what residents of developing nations spend on healthcare. In fact, the US spends so much for healthcare services that it eats up approximately 17.6% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Based on these numbers alone, we can surmise that the US has uncontrollable health care appetite, because Europeans (or other Northern Americans like Canada) have the same health care service provided to them, at a fraction of this figure. What is surprising is that the metrics for top of the line health care, as what US politicians would claim to be supporting, is actually far below standards in economically developed countries. Consider for example the fact that the average number of physicians per 1,000 people in developed countries is 3.1 while in the US it is only 2.1. US hospital beds are also lower than the average (2.6 for US and 3.4 for global average). So based on these numbers, it can be surmised that the US does not have enough and will have to continue purchasing more health care services and products, to be truly “world class”. The answer to the question therefore is, the US will continue to have an insatiable appetite for healthcare services today and in the foreseeable future.
- Undoubtedly, the US healthcare system needs to be reformed. According to Dewar, “The concern over the future of health care revolves around three broad issues: cost, quality, and access. As private health insurance declines and the number of uninsured people steadily rise, emerging public consensus is that the system is in need of reform. Gaps in coverage, combined with the upward trend in medical care spending over the past several decades, add to the commonly-held belief that the U.S. healthcare system is in crisis. Many are concerned over access to care for the uninsured and the prospects for continued access for those currently with insurance.” In addition, Chris Connover of Forbes wrote that “the U.S. health system needed reform was never in doubt. However, that government-run health care was the answer was never in doubt only in the minds of progressives. Experts believe that the enactment of any health care reform, particularly the one espoused by government today called “Obamacare” puts the US firmly on the path towards government-run health care”(Connover, 2012). According to the Congressional Budget Office, the enactment of Obamacare will bring the cost of healthcare spending down for the federal government. In fact, it’s a very little known fact that private companies benefit from the law also. Under Obamacare, families with group income that fall between the 100% and 400% of the poverty line can avail of tax credits that they can utilize in paying for insurance premiums (Obamacare Facts, 2013). Such tax credit may be availed in advance or refunded. These families have no enough money to buy insurance but are considered to have more not to be qualified in the Medicaid. With Medicaid Expansion they can be covered. The federal government offers state government that will have Medicaid Expansion funding of 100% on the first three years and 90% on the succeeding years. The potential savings on expenses will be very different and if we are to believe that savings on expenditures will lead to an improvement in quality, then the answer is yes, healthcare reforms should make a difference.
Works Cited
Connover, Chris. Repealing Obamacare in the Vothing Booth. 2012. http://www.forbes.com/sites/chrisconover/2012/11/06/repealing-obamacare-in-the-voting-booth/. 17 September 2013.
Dewar, D.M. Essentials of Health Economics. Massachusetts: Jones and Barlett Publishers, 2010.
Kane, Jason. The Rundown: PBS News Hour. 2012. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2012/10/health-costs-how-the-us-compares-with-other-countries.html. 17 September 2013.
Obama Care Facts. Obamacare Bill. 2013. http://www.obamacarefacts.com/obamacarebill.php. . 17 September 2013.
