Healthcare Issues in the USA Review Assignment

Healthcare Issues in the USA
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Healthcare is one of the most essential needs of all human beings, regardless of the society in which they live. As such, it is a human right that no individual should be deprived of across the world. Unfortunately, this is hardly the case. Along the same lines, it is important to understand that the government of any nation is tasked with the responsibility of providing its citizens with reliable, affordable, and high-quality healthcare services that meet their needs. While this position applies to all governments, those of industrialized nations have demonstrated the most significant degree of prowess when it comes to providing healthcare to their citizens. In essence, all governments should strive to provide their citizens with universalized healthcare that ensures the entire population is insured and that it can receive healthcare services for little to no money at all. At the core of the service delivery exhibited by such governments and their health departments are robust and organized healthcare systems specifically tailored to meet the people’s needs. This is especially true for nations that have universal healthcare. However, the establishment of universal healthcare is not in itself a guarantee of reliable, affordable, and high-quality healthcare. The design of the healthcare system particularly on its affordability and feasibility also influences the ability of said system to deliver upon its mandate to the citizens. It can have significant sociopolitical, health, and even economic ramifications on a country, and so should be carefully considered.
Capitalism has often been blamed for being the core propagator of inequality within the society. This is perhaps attributed to the fact that in a capitalistic society, the presence of a free market translates into a society where any individual is capable of making their own choices from among a plethora of options. In such a society, which is the one in the USA, healthcare has essentially been commodified and made into a business. The presence of institutions such as Medicare and Medicaid work well to help make healthcare accessible to the general public at affordable prices. However, this still makes healthcare unavailable to millions of Americans every year, particularly due to the fact that the costs of healthcare remain out of reach for millions. In America, one must pay in order to access any kind of care, and this is one of the factors that contributes towards the alienation of millions from access to healthcare. It is important to remember that capitalism is at the heart of the American economic program, and this significantly influences how healthcare is approached. However, it should also be noted that the capitalist system in the USA also contributes towards making the American healthcare industry arguably the best in the world. This is mainly because it creates a flexible market with many potential options for buying health insurance. The competition among insurance providers inevitably results in the public getting the best healthcare covers possible at different price points. At the same time, such a system allows individuals to get health insurance cover tailored to their needs, which is hig...