Current U.S. System

A Seamless Process

Normally, viewing something that is seamless, like the even surface of a newly paved road or the glassy surface of a calm ocean, fills the beholder with an odd sense of satisfaction. Similarly, policies should work in the same streamlined fashion. In other words, laws that fit together neatly to form a united organization are much easier to navigate than a patchwork system stitched together in a desperate attempt to resemble a functional system. Unfortunately, the current United States healthcare system resembles a dissociated group of ideas bunched together that is costing the United States heavy losses to maintain rather than a polished efficient system.

Policies should fit together neatly to form a united organization that is easy to understand. Much like this puzzle, all the pieces fit and the picture is clear. Systems, Vendre. “Puzzle – Dusk.” www.printworksmarket.com. Accessed April 16, 2020. https://www.printworksmarket.com/p/shop/puzzles/puzzle-dusk.html.

Current coverage methods:

According to the New York Times, “healthcare in the United States is a mix of clashing ideas.”(1) For instance, some citizens have job-provided health insurance or pay for an insurance package of their choosing. Others received insurance with the aid of the Affordable Care Act. Single-payer Medicare is available mainly for Senors above 65 and low-income people can acquire Medicaid. To top it all off, the 2018 census concluded that there were 28 million people that were still uninsured and that the number of uninsured had risen by 0.4% since 2017 (2). This is due to the fact that the United States is the only developed country that has not signed mandatory health insurance at the federal level into law. Most hospitals are private except those operated by the Veterans Health Administration. In essence, the United States is currently in a state of division when it comes to healthcare and the politicians attempted to find the ‘happy middle ground’ by mashing together pieces of every healthcare system available.

The G.D.P. is a good way to compare spending on healthcare between different countries. Ashanti, Kiara. “What Is Gross Domestic Product (GDP) – Definition & Calculations.” Money Crashers. Accessed April 16, 2020. https://www.moneycrashers.com/gross-domestic-product-gdp-definition/.

The cost of operating the healthcare system:

Logically, the next important question to address is the cost of operating the healthcare system of the United States. When all the costs are added up, the United States spends 17.7 percent of its Gross Domestic Product (G.D.P.) to maintain this patchwork system. Shockingly, no other developed country comes close to spending 17.7 percent of their corresponding G.D.P., which means that the United States is the least cost-efficient. Sharing second place on the cost list, are Switzerland and France that spend 11-12 percent of their corresponding G.D.P. to finance healthcare. However, Switzerland has arguably the best medical results worldwide, while France covers near all its citizens with not just one but two layers of insurance! To clarify the first layer is mandatory while the second layer has been bought by most French citizens. The United States, meanwhile, has neither excuse to hide behind. To clarify, the 6 percent difference between 17.7 percent and 11-12 percent is considered to be huge since percentages of the national budget represent trillions of dollars. As the Total Public Debt Outstanding reaches a stunning $24,301,778,443,949.21 according to calculations done by the treasurydirect.gov, it is due time to switch to a new cost-efficient system (3). With the healthcare system in such a terrible financial state, many Americans feel the need for change, but there are still controversial over which system would be best.

Taxation is a serious concern for the American people so it is important to incorporate Single-Payer healthcare without raising taxes remarkably. Silva, Matthew De. “Why Your Tax Refund Is Smaller and What to Do about It.” Quartz. Quartz, April 9, 2019. https://qz.com/1590752/why-your-tax-refund-is-smaller-and-what-to-do-about-it/.

This cartoon is making fun of the large premiums requested by health insurers. The payer felt the need to hire a bodyguard to guard the huge amount of cash that he is transporting to the insurance company. https://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/h/healthcare_premium.asp

Addressing the issues in brief:

In order to convince the public that single-payer healthcare is the most ideal candidate, it is essential to address the various issues that are normally associated with single-payer healthcare. These issues are the connection of single-payer healthcare with socialist ideology, the future of preexisting private insurance companies, the rise of taxation, the decrease in care quality, and the rates at which medical professionals will be paid. Nevertheless, there are solutions to the aforementioned issues. For instance, the question of whether a capitalist country can adopt a socialist policy is a philosophical matter. The answer to that question lies in the fact that there is no such thing as a pure capitalist economy and that each country to ever adopt single-payer healthcare has tweaked the concept to best suit its economy, therefore, changing its socialist nature. Another example of a solvable issue is the future of preexisting private health insurance companies under a single-payer healthcare system. When switching to a single-payer system, private insurance companies do not necessarily need to be removed. Some countries, like Canada, pay insurance companies to provide the care, while others, like Britain, keep private insurance as an option for anyone willing to pay the premiums. One of the central worries about single-payer healthcare is the effect it will have on taxation. According to “House Hearing, 113th Congress – POISED TO PROFIT: HOW OBAMACARE HELPS INSURANCE COMPANIES EVEN IF IT FAILS PATIENTS”, insurance companies have already secured more than one billion dollars in tax money bailout(4). In other words, single-payer healthcare will have little to no effect on taxation because insurance companies are already receiving tax money. Furthermore, citizens will no longer have to pay premiums. I will be addressing these issues and solutions in even more detail on my website to convince the public that single-payer healthcare is the most ideal candidate.

Footnotes:

1.Carroll, Aaron E., and Austin Frakt. “The Best Health Care System in the World: Which One Would You Pick?” The New York Times. The New York Times, September 18, 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/18/upshot/best-health-care-system-country-bracket.html.

2.US Census Bureau. “Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2018.” The United States Census Bureau, November 8, 2019. https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2019/demo/p60-267.html.

3. “REPORTS.” Debt to the Penny (Daily History Search Application). Accessed April 16, 2020. https://treasurydirect.gov/NP/debt/current.

4.“House Hearing, 113th Congress – POISED TO PROFIT: HOW OBAMACARE HELPS INSURANCE COMPANIES EVEN IF IT FAILS PATIENTS.” Govinfo, 18 June 2014, www.govinfo.gov/app/details/CHRG-113hhrg88826/CHRG-113hhrg88826/summary.