The United States can boast about premiere medical research and teaching institutions and technological advancements that are cutting edge. But the reality is that many people do not have access to this care. Access to affordable, quality health care should be a right for all Americans and not a privilege for only those who can afford it. Forty-five million people who are uninsured and millions more who are underinsured constitute a national crisis. The current model of care in the United States is directed more toward illness care rather than early detection and prevention. Illness care has a higher associated cost than health care.
Americans are paying more for their insurance and receiving less care for the cost. Many insurance companies exclude people based on pre-existing conditions or charge so much for the coverage of a pre-existing condition that the costs become prohibitive. A pre-existing condition can be something as simple as a small skin cancer growth removal or an arthroscopic evaluation of a knee. People need coverage for their full health care needs…physical, mental, dental, vision…not just for the parts of them that don’t pose a risk to insurance companies.
Some disturbing points that highlight this crisis include:
- 1. One of the primary reasons for bankruptcy in this country is because of a large uncovered medical expense;
- American auto manufacturers have indicated that the high cost of health care coverage for their workers contributes to higher automobile prices which put American manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage when compared with auto makers in countries where a national health program exists;
- Lack of access to health care is a national security issue. If the United States were to experience a severe flu pandemic or a bioterrorism event and tens of millions of people were without access to early care and intervention, the results would be devastating. The most recent mild flu pandemic serves as a warning;
- Most health care dollars are spent in the last months of life;
- The US spends at least twice the amount of money for health care without covering all of its residents (unlike universal health care systems in Canada and Europe) and is 37th on the list for morbidity and mortality of its population; Cuba ranks higher;
- When taking into consideration the amount of public money that is already being spent on health care, it becomes apparent that it is time for restructuring.
Public monies are spent for Medi-caid, Medicare, Veteran’s Health, and Healthy Families…but public dollars are also used to pay for health insurance for local, state and federal employees…teachers, public hospital nurses and doctors, road workers, librarians, engineers, etc. When all of these are included in the calculation it becomes apparent that the tax payers are already paying for the majority of health care costs in this country. It seems clear that it is well past the time to address this health care crisis and develop a universal health care system that is affordable and comprehensive.
See the links below for more information through organizations that are addressing this important issue.
Health Care for All:
http://www.healthcareforall.org/index.html
http://www.results.org/website/article.asp?id=1459
Physicians for a National Health Programs: http://www.pnhp.org/
The California Health Care Foundation: http://www.chcf.org/
