American Health Care System

The Problem with the American Health Care System

The American health care system is under duress . Some people praise the US medical system because of the availability of state-of -the-art treatments while some criticize because of the many loopholes of the system and problems with insurance . Because of loopholes in the insurance system and the high price of getting medical treatment in the country , many ordinary American folk do not get basic health while only the high-income earners can handle high medical costs . Despite of the existence of government health insurance , American

citizens still feel the need to buy insurance from public firms since the government insurance system does not cover much of the medical needs of the people

Before analyzing the American health care system , it is first important to have a clear view of the system and the problems with it . The American health care system is made up of both public and private insurers but the unique part of this system is that the private sector remains dominant over the public sector . Statistics indicate that 62 percent of non-elderly Americans receive insurance receive from their employers in the private sector while 5 percent purchased their own insurance from private insurance companies . A small 15 percent rely on government insurance systems such as Medicare and Medicaid . Those who do not have any form of insurance account for 15 percent of the Public Health Insurance is mainly provided by Medicare and Medicaid (Chua , 2006

Medicare covers people at age 65 and above including some disabled people . It is a government single-payer program which is funded by tax collections , a payroll tax and paid premiums . It is funded together by the federal and state government . Medicare covers hospital services physician services , and medical drug benefits but over the years weaknesses have been spotted in this insurance system such as it includes an incomplete coverage for nursing facilities as well as an insufficient preventive care coverage . It also does not provide for dental , hearing and vision health care . Because of the lack of services the elderly folk that avail of Medicare are forced to get insurance plans from private companies , and thus , many of the old folk spend 22 percent of their income for providing their personal health care needs not covered by government health insurance (Chua , 2006

Medicaid on the other hand is an insurance program specifically provided for the disabled and for low income earners . It is stated under federal law that states must provide medical care to the very poor pregnant women , children , elderly , disabled , and parents . Adults that have no children receive no coverage from Medicaid as well as poor people that have a higher income that make them unqualified for Medicaid benefits but states have the freedom to alter eligibility levels . Just like Medicare , Medicaid receives funding from taxes . Medicaid has many good benefits but many of those who have availed of this insurance program find it difficult to look for health care providers that accept...