Cases of Ordinary Phenomena Even In The Modern Developed World of Medicine
23-year-old Tyler, a sophomore at USC, fell down down a flight of stairs on his way back from class. Naturally, he didn't think much of it. However, upon waking the following morning, he realized something was very wrong with his leg, so he called his college’s medical services. They offered to call an ambulance for him, however, Tyler's insurance doesn't cover that. The ride alone held a cost of over $300, something a struggling college student can not afford. So, Tyler took pain medication and waited until the evening for his roommate to return from his classes and drive him to the hospital. However, the trials didn’t end there for Tyler. After prescribing pain medication and plenty of rest, E.R. doctors recommended Tyler see a specialist to ensure there was not going to be long-lasting muscle damage; a price tag of over $1300, which his insurance didn’t cover. Consequently, Tyler did not make that appointment even though he was worried his leg would never be the same.
Unfortunately, cases like this one are a common occurrence even in today's medically advanced world. An astonishing 25% of American families have to decline their and their children's medical services due to the inability to pay for them. For older millennials (aged 27-36) the numbers are a bit higher at 32% lacking medical coverage because they cannot afford it. 11.3% of Americans don't have health insurance, but even those that do pay an average of over $1,300 out of pocket before meeting their deductible. Even more surprising is the amount of money that Americans still have to pay on average even after paying the deductibles: the average copay is $24 for primary care office visits, $37 for specialty care office visits, and $308 for the hospital admission. Subsequently, many people have simply stopped seeking medical attention and making jokes about moving to Canada where services such as these are free for all. This then begs the question: if healthcare is free in other countries, why isn’t it free in the United States?
What system have other countries adopted that allows for free healthcare? Universal health care. This is a system that ensures all citizens and communities have access to the promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative, and palliative health services they need, of sufficient quality to be effective, regardless of their ability to pay. In layman's terms, this covers three main points. Number one is equity in access to healthcare services; everyone who needs health services should get them, not only those who can pay for them. Number two the quality of healthcare services should be good enough to improve the health of those receiving services, no difference in treatment should be given simply because one cannot afford it. And the third point is that people should be protected against financial risk, ensuring that the cost of using services does not put them at risk of financial harm-being ill or getting into an accident should not cause someone to go bankrupt.
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Cases of Ordinary Phenomena Even In The Modern Developed World of Medicine. (2023, Feb 15). Retrieved from https://phdessay.com/cases-of-ordinary-phenomena-even-in-the-modern-developed-world-of-medicine/
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