Government Health Care for Low, Research Paper Example

In the United States, we spend 16 percent of gross domestic product on health care, or about double what most major industrialized nations spend that spend 8 to 10 percent. The U.S. spent $6,280 per capita on health care in 2004 – more than double the amount spent in other major countries. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimate that health care spending will continue to grow faster than GDP over the next ten years. (Davis et al. 2007)

Government spending through Medicare and Medicaid provide health care to low-income individuals and families. The United States has wide variations in health care costs and quality, indicating a potential for savings in cost cutting. Government spending is by far the most important source of funding with Medicare and Medicaid accounting for almost one-fourth of all federal spending. They are expected to double in ten years from their 2007 high of $627 billion. (Pear, 2008)

Government funded programs impact the overall quality of medical delivery systems in the United States. Cuts in these programs trickle through the system and eventually cause critical health programs to be reduced or eliminated, care provider reimbursement rates to become frozen, and program eligibility criteria to be changed to keep more people from receiving benefits. Funding cuts at the federal level impact state Medicaid programs and federal beneficiaries of Medicare coverage. By reducing provider payments, these programs cut services as an end result.

Out of pocket health care expenses are expected to rise another ten percent this year, which means that workers’ share of out of pocket expenses have tripled since 2001. Health insurance premiums have risen 131 percent in the past ten years. By the year 2019, health insurance is estimated to cost over $30,000 a year for a family of four. This is an increase of 166 percent over today’s premium averages. (Tuttle, 2009)

Often, people have medical emergencies and no financial means to pay for treatment. This is particularly true of young people. It is estimated that one-third of all 21 to 29 year-olds (about 13,000,000 of them) do not have any health insurance coverage. (Tuttle, 2009)

A single-payer, Medicare type plan would be the best way to improve health care in this country. Unfortunately, such a program was never put on the table as a serious consideration during the universal health care negotiations. The public option for health care simply means that the federal government would go into the health insurance business to provide competition to private companies. Advocates of a public option claim the added competition would drive down costs and provide lower cost coverage to more people. Congressional opponents, mostly Republicans, suggest that private insurance companies will be put at an unfair advantage, since a government-run health plan does not have to make a profit and pay huge financial salaries, bonuses and perks to corporate executives. (Sahadi, 2009)

Progressives in the House wanted a law that charges premiums “at the lowest levels possible, not tied to the rates of private insurance plans” and would “have the ability to structure the provider rates to promote quality care …” (Sahadi, 2009 1) The public option would also be available to everyone in every state if the most progressive legislators had their way. This would be the best way to improve on government funded health care and its delivery.

References

Davis, Karen, Schoen, Cathy, Guterman, Stuart, Shih, Tony, Schoenbaum, Stephen C. and Weinbaum, Ilana, (2007) “Slowing the growth of U.S. health care expenditures: What are the options?” January, The Commonwealth Fund, accessed online on March 6, 2012 at: http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Program-Areas/High-Performance-Health-System/Commission-on-a-High-Performance-Health-System.aspx

Pear, Robert, (2008) “Bush’s new budget to ask for large cuts in growth of Medicare,” International Herald Tribune, January 31, accessed online on March 6, 2012 at: http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/01/31/america/budget.php

Sahadi, Jeanne, (2009) “What’s a public health plan anyway?” CNN Money, June 9, accessed online on March 6 10, 2012 at: http://money.cnn.com/2009/06/09/news/economy/health_care_reform/index.htm

Tuttle, Brad, (2009) “A Dozen Disturbing Health Care Statistics,” Time Magazine, September 30, accessed online on March 6, 2012 at: http://money.blogs.time.com/2009/09/30/a-dozen-disturbing-health-care-statistics/