Question

1. Restrictions: Identify some examples of how the U.S. government is restricted from adopting sweeping policy reform to address an identified public health issue.

2. Pros and Cons: Explain at least one pro and one con of that restriction.

3. Alternative: Conclude by proposing an alternative way to solve the public health issue. Be sure your proposal considers population health improvement.

Answer 1

1. The economic development of a nation depends as much as on factors like per capita income, GDP which are quantitative as on factors like a good standard of living, literacy rate , housing facilities, sanitation, health care and so on. While the developed nation realized the importance of such qualitative factors and sought to give them their due importance in their respective public spending programs, the developing nations are striving to create an awareness in this aspect.

However, In the US , health care costs are prohibitively high and hence its important to get a health insurance cover . These help in creating a sort of immunity ( to an extent ) from the very high health costs. The government has been spending a considerable amount of money on health care provision, it has built many hospitals, and introduced many health care schemes but theses all lesser in proportion to the needs of the population.

Issues like heavy body mass , much in excess of the required levels, blood pressure, diabetes, sexually transmitted diseases are widespread and issues that need to be most regularly addressed by the US government.

The chief issue with regards to providing a uniform or an aggregate health care policy that could impact the nation on a larger basis is that health care is a costly provision. The government has to coordinate with insurance companies, pharmaceutical firms and so on who are very much a part of the agencies that provide health care to the people of the US.

For example, in case of vaccinations , the government can take up suitable steps to create an awareness about the positive effects of vaccination, and even list the various vaccines provided by the State towards health care programs of its citizens, yet on an individual basis the person  might be willing to undertake the vaccination only if he feels that the benefit that he derives from the consumption of the vaccination is higher than the cost of its provision. In the absence of any such an analysis, the individuals may not be willing to take up the vaccinations, and the motive of the government in providing such a service is lost.

There could be disagreement with regard cost, profit involved, quality of the health care service provided. Another major issue with regards to health care provision is that US has a higher rate of people immigrating from other countries. The immigration policies are not as liberal as those available for citizens and the government to has to decide upon suitable health policies for such immigrants. Hence it cannot bring about a common policy for all since such issues restrict the government from implementing programs on a ‘whole ‘ country basis.

2. The advantage of such a restriction is that it helps the US government decide on the actual beneficiaries of the program. Since health care is a ‘merit good’ requiring government intervention , the government will be able to distinguish between its own nationals and foreign nationals and adopt suitable policies accordingly especially without allowing these policies becoming a burden upon the exchequer.

The governmental intervention and its active initiative in undertaking such policies will enable these exorbitant services be available to all in the society, since the government will take up the service on a welfare basis rather than as profit goal oriented.

However the demerit or disadvantage of such a measure is that it could lead to the problem of free riders—people who cannot pay for the health care policy yet enjoy its benefits.

Moreover , the government has , to formulate different policies regarding the ‘national’ population as well as ‘immigrants ‘ who have been residing in the US since many years.

3.

As an alternative proposal, we can suggest that the government resorts to create an awareness through ad campaigns that sought to address the various health issues -especially those of common nature that are wide spread—It can also enlist the health schemes that are being offered by the government, and the target beneficiaries can be duly identified.

The government must spread information about the social benefits arising from the consumption of its health care services. The marginal social benefits have to be highlighted, since , for example, if a majority of the population is not expressing a desire to consume the health care services or decides to remain mere ‘mute’ spectators to health care services due to the costs involved, it could in effect lead to spread of diseases and virus which may in fact aggravate the situation and the population might end up bearing the greater part of the health costs. The community has to realize that health care being a ‘merit good’ , has greater marginal social benefits than the marginal social costs of providing them. The intervention of State in such an arena is of greater importance since the welfare oriented state programs could be less costly than the health cover offered by the profit oriented private sector.