What should be done about the global healthcare issues?

There are a varied number of healthcare systems in our world today. While some nations’ healthcare systems share similarities, there are also some that differ quite drastically. Healthcare reform is a touchy issue, and decisions have to be made carefully and thoughtfully. But in order to understand how to best go about making these reforms, we must first take into account the many different healthcare systems in the world.

First, let’s take a look at the healthcare systems of Britain and Canada. It has been suggested that the United States adopt a system that is similar to these two. For one, they cost less than that of the United States (take a look at the expenditure image below). With money being such a big issue, the cost is a definite determining factor. They are both universal healthcare systems, so they guarantee service to all their patients for their patients’ entire lives. Healthcare in these countries is funded by general taxation, the government pays for doctors’ salaries, and the hospital expenses are fully covered. Also, like in America, people have a free choice of physician. But reforms could also be made in these countries. Britain and Canada should focus their efforts on making their healthcare services more readily available, for the wait to receive treatment can sometimes be quite lengthy.

Next let’s look at the healthcare systems of France, Germany, and Japan. These systems share many similarities with one another. All three countries have developed some type of national healthcare system (take a look at the universal healthcare image below). Japan’s national healthcare system provides retirees and the unemployed with insurance and healthcare plans. France and Germany also make insurance available to the unemployed. People in these countries, like in the United States, have a free choice of their physician, and employees are guaranteed health insurance. But unlike the United States, insurers are required to provide minimum coverage, which encompasses a wide range of services, including coverage for physician’s services, hospital care, laboratory tests, prescription drugs, and dental and optical care. In the United States, coverage provided by insurers tends to be much more limited. More recent reforms have been in these countries to restrict their healthcare spending. This has contributed to a reduction in their expenses (look at expenditure image below). Similar reforms could be made elsewhere in the world. But while this might sound like a good idea for the United States, which has one of the most expensive healthcare systems in the world, many Americans are already concerned with the lack of money going towards healthcare initiatives. Recently, a number of healthcare proposals were vetoed, while more and more money was put into our efforts in Iraq.

In Sweden, like in Britain and Canada, healthcare is funded by general taxation. Insurance and care is given to everyone, and medical service is free. There is little private care in Sweden, which could be an area for possible reforms. But interest in private care is not increasing, so there’s no pressing issue to be solved.

One country where reforms have made a drastic difference is Cuba. For one, they have made healthcare available to the entire population. They have also received aid from foreign countries, such as Canada, which has allowed them to get caught up with the latest technology. As a result, once widely spread diseases are now on the decline. In general, Cuba is a good healthcare model for developing countries.


Then there are countries where reforms are desperately needed. Russia and South Africa, for example, lack many necessities. Their hospitals are short on x-ray machines, antibiotics, and even hot water. If possible, the government needs to step in and make changes, or maybe even request the aid of other countries.

One common aspect of many global healthcare systems is the universal plan. Most Europe countries, including England, Spain, Italy, and previously mentioned France and Germany, have universal healthcare systems. The systems in these countries also appear to be fairly successful. Developing similar universal systems in other countries might be one possible solution to relieve some of the issues with global healthcare. There is a constant demand for healthcare, so we have to find ways to increase the supply. A universal plan would guarantee care to the entire population, hopefully eliminating problems with scarcity.

This universal system could possibly be funded by general taxes, as in Britain, Canada, and Sweden, which would hopefully eliminate some of the cost issues. What would be ideal is if we could lessen the monetary value of healthcare, instead giving it more of a personal health value. Our concern for money often gets in the way of our concern for proper health care. For example, take our general lack of preventative medicine. People often don’t pay for preventative medicine because it’s too expensive, but then they end up having to pay for a more expensive medical emergency because they didn’t take the effort to prevent it in the first place.

Above: The logo of the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO is the directing agency for health within the United Nations system. It manages global health issues by setting standards, regulating research, monitoring health trends, and providing aid to countries. WHO aims to improve healthcare on a global level.

Reform goals are currently in place to broaden insurance coverage, improve the quality of healthcare, and to decrease costs. One proposal has been to increase the number of healthcare providers. This would make that are of business less of a monopoly (in the United States, Medicare and Medicaid are the dominating programs that greatly influence the course of our national healthcare). This would also hopefully allow healthcare services to reach more of the population.

If we don’t do anything to better our current healthcare systems, people will not be able to pay for services in the future, especially in the United States. The number of Americans not covered by insurance would increase and the quality of healthcare would decline as prices continued to rise. Canada, Britain, Germany, and France are in relatively in good shape and are in no immediate danger. Yet there’s always room for improvement. But countries such as Russia and South Africa will be left in dire straits if reforms are not made. People will probably be forced to leave the country in order to obtain sufficient healthcare.

With the U.S. presidential election approaching, many candidates are voicing their opinions on national healthcare and proposing possibly reforms. John Edwards is aiming for a step-by-step process, beginning by giving all employees health insurance and eventually requiring all citizens to have health insurance. While this plan sounds fairly expensive, Edwards plans to use tax credits. By making taxpayers pay for healthcare costs, it would become a more universal effort and would make the costs seem less expensive because you would pay in increments. Mitt Romney also wants to provide everyone with health insurance, but his plan involves a little more government control. Barack Obama wants to provide affordable healthcare of better quality and promotes preventative medicine. Hilary Clinton would like to offer new coverage choices for both the insured and uninsured, ensure affordable health coverage for everyone, lower premiums, and increase security of services. She is an advocate of shared responsibility when it comes to fixing the healthcare system, and is aiming for a fiscally responsible plan.

While no single country has all the answers to the global healthcare issue, most have aspects that are working well. Each country must put the best aspects together in a way that works for them. Hopefully then global healthcare will improve.

Sources:
http://www.who.int/en/
→Health Topics, Data and statistics, Countries
→http://www.who.int/topics/health_economics/en/
http://www.eldis.org/health (periodicals)
→http://www.eldis.org/go/topics/resource-guides/health/health-and-the-
millennium-development-goals
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/article/close-personal-taste-socialized-medicine-243439.html (periodical)
http://johnedwards.com/issues/health-care/health-care-fact-sheet/
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/healthcare/
http://www.hillaryclinton.com/feature/healthcareplan/summary.aspx
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/0A43A30BC3DE09B6852572C100541487

Images:
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