Question

Compare healthcare cost in US with any OTHER country and advantages and disadvantages of the healtchare systems.

Answer 1

The United States has a mixture of government-run and private insurance. The government pays most of the cost, but also subsidizes private health insurance through Obamacare. One-third of costs is for administration, not patient care. Health care service providers are private. Sixty percent of citizens get private insurance from their employers. Fifteen percent receive Medicare for those 65 and older. The federal government also funds Medicaid for low-income families and the Children's Health Insurance Program for children. It pays for veterans, Congress, and federal employees. Despite all these, there are 28 million Americans who have no coverage. They either are exempt from the Obamacare mandate or can't afford insurance.

In 2016, health care cost 18 percent of GDP. That was a staggering US$9,892 per person. Exactly 18 percent of patients skipped prescriptions because of cost. But only 4.9 percent of patients reported a wait time of more than four weeks to see a specialist. In 2015, life expectancy was 79.3 years. The third leading cause of death was a medical error. The quality of care is low. It ranks 28th according to the United Nations.

United Kingdom: The United Kingdom has single-payer socialized medicine. The National Health Service runs hospitals and pays doctors as employees. The government pays 80 percent of costs through general taxes. It pays for all medical care, including dental, hospice care, and some long-term care and eye care. There are some copays for drugs. All residents receive free care. Visitors receive care for emergencies and infectious diseases. Private insurance for elective medical procedures is available.

In 2016, health care costs were 9.7 percent of GDP. The cost was US$4,193 per person. Only 2.3 percent of patients skipped prescriptions because of cost. But 29.9 percent of patients reported a wait time of more than four weeks to see a specialist. To keep prices low, some expensive and uncommon drugs aren't available. Hospitals can be crowded with long wait times. In 2018, the flu outbreak extended wait times to 12 hours. But most measures of health, like infant mortality rates, are better than average. In 2015, life expectancy was 81.2 years.

Advantages

Universal health care lowers health care costs for an economy. The government controls the price of medication and medical services through negotiation and regulation.

It eliminates the administrative costs of dealing with different private health insurers. Doctors only deal with one government agency. U.S. doctors must deal with many private insurance companies, Medicare, and Medicaid. It standardizes billing procedures and coverage rules. Companies don't have to hire staff to deal with different health insurance company rules.

It forces hospitals and doctors to provide the same standard of service at a low cost. In a competitive environment like the United States, health care providers focus on new technology. They offer expensive services and pay doctors more. They try to compete by targeting the wealthy. They charge more to get a higher profit. It leads to higher costs.

Universal health care creates a healthier workforce. Studies show that preventive care reduces the need for expensive emergency room usage. Before Obamacare, 46 percent of emergency room patients went because they had no other place to go.

They used the emergency room as their primary care physician.

Early childhood care prevents future social costs. These include crime, welfare dependency, and health issues. Health education teaches families how to make healthy lifestyle choices, preventing chronic diseases.

Disadvantages

Universal health care forces healthy people to pay for others' medical care. Chronic diseases, like diabetes and heart disease, make up 85 percent of health care costs. These diseases can often be prevented with lifestyle choices. The sickest 5 percent of the population consumes 50 percent of total health care costs.

The healthiest 50 percent consume only 3 percent of the nation's health care costs.

With free universal health care, people may not be as careful with their health. They don't have the financial incentive to do so. Without a copay, people might overuse emergency rooms and doctors.

Most universal health systems report long wait times for elective procedures. The government focuses on providing basic and emergency health care.

Governments limit payment amounts to keep costs low. Doctors have less incentive to provide quality care if they aren't well paid. They might spend less time per patient to keep their costs down. They have less funding for new life-saving technologies.

Health care costs overwhelm government budgets. For example, some Canadian provinces spend 40 percent of their budget on health care. That reduces funding for other programs like education and infrastructure.