Healthcare in the United States Essay Example

“Disease, sickness, and old age touch every family. Tragedy doesn't ask who you voted for. Health care is a basic human right.” – Massachusetts senator, ElizabethWarren. Universal healthcare is a scheme in which the government provides free healthcare to all citizens. The United States is the only developed country with no guaranteed medical access. Although presidents are re-elected every 4 years, healthcare coverage has never been the center of concern due to economic and political priorities. In the absence of “universal healthcare” US citizens face significant health challenges, the United States government can solve this issue by spending tax money on health services and buildings, along with re-chairing the members of the US Department of Health and Human Services to consider other plans like single-payer systems. 

The US believes that the safest option is keeping the system in place with no modifications. Currently, the government does not provide free medical care, it’s rather funded by private health insurers and non-governmental services (e.g., Medicare). The strongest advocate of this claim is that no significant amounts are spent on those who cannot repay but only on the rich who can afford this service therefore the US is financially stable. However, this is not entirely true, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that includes countries with universal health, spends 8.8% of their GDP on healthcare, while the US spends twice as much (17.1%). Noting that US citizens with health insurance don’t surpass 11% but countries with universal healthcare cover 100% of their people. Thus, to a large extent the country’s “ideal approach” is frail and unbefitting. Not only is healthcare scarce, but the financial wound the scheme leaves is deeper than in countries that apply universal healthcare.

A solution that can be implemented and possibly make a difference is taxation, adding more pressure on tax money doesn’t mean raising taxes, the US government could balance tax outcomes among multiple factors including universal healthcare. Switzerland, per se, is the #1 country in healthcare, with a well-studied tax system they provide all their citizens with medical needs. Since the enactment of the Swiss Federal Health Insurance Act in 1994 (Belloni, 2). Switzerland has provided universal medical services to all its 7.6 million residents, making its health coverage nine more than the US (Hoist, 1). A poor and weak healthcare system...  is that what America has come to today? If the US slowly starts implementing taxation to provide health supplies and buildings they would notice a decrease in the forty-five thousand Americans who die each year due to the lack of health care.

Another considerable solution is re-chairing the members of the US Department of Health and Human Services, as in 2021 Xavier Becca runs the department which includes thousands of employees, but only 10 representatives. The goal behind the department is to improve the healthcare system, however, the 10 representatives seem to oppose universal healthcare therefore it’s never negotiable. Applying changes to the members may be eye-opening to other systems such as the single-payer system, which is a method that relies on 1 public system. Canada has been following a single-payer system since 2000. 8 out of 10 Canadians believe the system is adequate, which is understandable knowing that Canada ranks 9th in healthcare (McAlister). Considering the political views of Bernie Sanders, a presidential runner, he says, the purpose of healthcare should be to offer the highest quality healthcare to all people at the lowest possible expense, he continued: “A single-payer scheme would be the most effective way to do this”. After all, A country without universal healthcare is like a shelter without walls. 

In short, the united states is indeed struggling with healthcare and a country has nowhere to go without universal healthcare. The US can implement universal healthcare using taxation and reappointing the USDHHS members to get rid of today’s system and consider other plans. I call on the American government to contemplate the above solutions with the hopes of change. Universal healthcare is a bandage to a bleeding bruise, thus I request American citizens to raise awareness and take action to protect their own health.