Health Care Crisis
The American Health care system is facing so many problems that if immediate action is not taken, the system will collapse. America might be a great nation but when compared to other developed nations in terms of medical care provision, the nation is lagging far much behind. Mukau (32) describes the American health care system as “bloated, wasteful and insufficient”. This is proven right by the Sicko documentary filmed by Michel Moor which focuses on the healthcare system in the United States and how it affects its citizens.
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Causes of Heath Care Crisis
The problems facing the current healthcare system include the high and unsustainable cost of medication, poor investment, uneven distribution of healthcare leaving a portion of the citizens uncovered and the system is more focused on the business side of health care rather than the wellbeing of people (Mukau, 33). The root cause of this problem is not mainly the cost of health care but the selfishness that some leaders or the influential people have that denies American Citizens their rights to medical care. According to the Sicko documentary, when Hillary Clinton was the first lady of the United States back in the 1980s she was doing everything possible to make quality medical services available to all by coming up with policies. This did not last long because she was met with strong opposition from the healthcare industry. Accessing medical services without insurance become impossible which greatly affected the low-income citizens. Health care insurance companies made huge returns from the hard earned money of desperate Americans.
Due to the high demand for health care insurance, the companies have taken advantage of this and heightened the insurance premiums compared to previous years. As if that is not enough, the quality of the services offered is going down by day. Many Americans have come out to complain about these issues and the problem they face with these health care insurance companies. From the documentary, these insurances are more focused on making a profit from the citizens instead of being considerate and trustworthy. They use every excuse available to cut people from insurance in times of need.
The healthcare issue has been politicized in a way that once one government comes up with a solution, a different government makes changes to the policies and this becomes a cycle on the expenses of Americans’ lives. A good example is the Obama Care Heath Program; this program has been a savior to millions of people for its lower and charges on Medicare and drug prescription. This affordable care act has been met with a lot of opposition from the current Trump’s government (Luhby, 1).
Personal Impact of Obama Care
Obama care is a program that has made an impact on every individual’s life. It has made reasonable changes to the healthcare system making more people to be insured hence lowering the rate of uninsured people to 8.6%. I am personally a beneficiary of the Obama Care Program. As a Medicare enrollee, I have received free preventive benefits by going for heart disease and diabetes screening. This assessment is important because it makes it possible for me to know my risk factors and the chances of getting these chronic illnesses. The program has considered people with preexisting conditions unlike other insurance programs; it includes covers for people with preexisting conditions. I personally have close family members with high blood pressure and diabetes who were turned away or charged more in other insurance companies.
In addition to this, the program has made the cost of drugs affordable to all. This is such a relief since other insurance companies offer “partial” services. For instance, insurance can pay for a chemotherapy session for a client but decline to cater to the drugs prescribed. It has also affected me personally because it is a requirement by the program for every citizen to have insurance or pay a penalty. According to my opinion, this is a very bold move but necessary because it is a way of helping people easily access medical services. In one way or another, this made me insured and I have never regretted that decision because I have no worries concerning medical insurance.
Effects of the Heath Care Crisis on My Profession
As an aspiring nurse, these healthcare crises have a huge effect on my career choice. The country is already facing a shortage of nurses and these crises do not make the situation better. As noted in the documentary, it is so demotivating to work in a system that will require you to go against your ethics. What I mean is when a caregiver is required to turn a needy patient way just because his /her insurance does not cover certain services. As medical practitioners, we vow to protect lives no matter the situation. What saddens me more is the way that the caregivers have to live with the tragedies that are a result of the collapsing health care system.
Possible Realistic Solutions
When America Heath care system is compared to other countries such as Great Britain and Canada, the cost is too high in America and the quality of services is deteriorating as well. The national fee schedule should be made from the extended Medicare fee schedule to lower costs and provide Medicare for all. Another realistic solution is having transparency in our medical prices, having the National fee Schedule will make this easier. From my point of view tight competition results in lowered insurance prices therefore the system should make it easier for insurers to enter the health insurance market (Strauss, 1).
Work Cited
Moore, Michael, Meghan O’Hara, Christoph Vitt, Geoffrey Richman, Christopher Seward, Dan Swietlik, and Erin O’Hara. Sicko. Montréal: Distributed exclusively in Canada by Alliance Films, 2007.
Mukau, Leslie. “American Health Care In Crisis: Fundamentals Of Health Care Reforms”. American Journal Of Clinical Medicine, vol 6, no. 4, 2009, pp. 32 – 33.,
Strauss, Matt. “A Practical, Non-Partisan Solution To America’s Healthcare Crisis”. Medium, 2017,
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