Checkpoint: Tackling America's Enduring Healthcare Issue
Background
Percent Of GDP Spent On Health, 1980-2021
Of all the developed and high-income nations in the international community, the United States is an outlier when it comes to its healthcare system, and not in a good way.
While Americans typically spend far more of their income on medical expenses (17.8% of GDP as of 2021), the United States is the only affluent country without universal healthcare for its citizens. The US often boasts the title of the world's wealthiest country, having a GDP of 20.89 trillion dollars, but it consistently fails to meet the standards that other similar countries have set.
The nation maintains the lowest life expectancy at birth, the lowest rate of patient-physician encounters, and the fewest practising doctors per 1,000 people. Meanwhile, the US has the highest death rate for avoidable ailments, the highest rate of people with several chronic conditions, and the highest levels of obesity. Worse still, American mothers face a greater risk of maternal or infant mortality, and the general population has some of the highest suicide rates in the developed world.
Amid this intricate and horrifying panorama of US healthcare, the concept of an improved welfare state emerges as a potential panacea for the enduring problems of accessibility and affordability. As the country gradually recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, policies continue to evolve, prescription drug costs escalate, and the task of revolutionizing affordable health care for all citizens becomes ever more dire. To remedy this crisis, the United States must enact specific policies and strategies to usher a complete shift toward a more equitable and inclusive healthcare system.
Universal Healthcare: A Blueprint For Equality
Percent Of Total Population With Health Insurance Coverage
At its philosophical core, a welfare state champions social equality and envisions a government that guarantees its citizens' well-being. Similar systems in other states yield superior care results, radically reduced health discrepancies, and more resilient and economically productive societies. Universal healthcare is an inalienable right that the United States should offer every American, regardless of socioeconomic standing, but this goal necessitates implementing specific procedures.
A crucial stride in this direction is introducing a public healthcare option that operates jointly with private providers, facilitating cost reduction while conserving quality of care. Stringent regulations on private insurance companies are also essential for eliminating discriminatory practices and ensuring every American can enjoy comprehensive healthcare service.
Medicare for All–––a national health insurance program that social democratic Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has long advocated for–––would provide every family and individual with free coverage. "No networks, no premiums, no deductibles, no copays, no surprise bills," Sanders says, denouncing traditional insurance practices that lead to disparities in well-being between high-income and low-income people.
At the very least, he emphasizes, the government should enhance Medicare to include dental, hearing, vision, long-term care, in-patient and out-patient services, mental health treatment, reproductive and maternity care, and prescription drugs. The long-term purpose is to lay the groundwork for a system where healthcare is a fundamental human right for all.
Prescription Drug Costs: A Modern-Day Monster
Prescription Drug Expenditures and Prescriptions, 2016, 2021
The United States spends more on prescription drugs per capita than any other country in the world, with total spending rising to almost 600 billion dollars in 2020. Between 2008 and 2017, the average annual spending on prescription drugs increased by around 3.6 percent per year, outpacing inflation and wage growth rates.
Rising medication costs pose a formidable challenge to the pursuit of affordable healthcare, but stringent price controls could be an important tool to rein them in. Ensuring that critical drugs cost something within an average person's price range is paramount to solving this problem.
Similarly, negotiating with pharmaceutical companies and leveraging the US's collective purchasing power to secure lower prices will balance market forces. Some medications that treat chronic conditions or rare diseases come with exorbitant price tags due to monopolization–––for example, three companies monopolize life-saving (and expensive) insulin: Novo Nordisk, Sanofi-Aventis, and Eli Lilly. Often, the high price of prescription drugs leads to non-adherence to regimens, worsening health outcomes, and preventable complications, hospitalizations, or even deaths.
The pharmaceutical industry profits from Americans who pay hundreds of dollars annually for necessary items, but ambitious patent reforms can topple monopolies on certain medications. Generic competition outside name-brand patents fosters a competitive market environment that benefits consumers and reduces costs.
Funding these initiatives calls for income-based health premiums and progressive taxation, equitably distributing the financial burden of healthcare and progressing toward an effective welfare state.
The Human Element: A Collaborative Approach To Healthcare
The essence of a working welfare state moves beyond mere structural reforms and embraces a fundamental ideological change in the United States. Primarily, this means prioritizing patient-centered care as opposed to profit and capitalist business practices.
Most other wealthy and powerful countries do not treat healthcare as a commodity but rather place human beings at the forefront, defining success not as economic efficiency but as the well-being of individuals.
Americans need to reevaluate their philosophies as well as healthcare metrics, improving medical care across the country with basic human empathy. Already, many American citizens recognize the need for a more intense focus on preventative care instead of treating ailments after the fact–suffering should not be a prerequisite to receiving treatment.
Achieving this ideal means directing resources toward proactive health measures, such as health education programs and encouraging regular checkups, mitigating the need for future expensive interventions. The responsibility for constructing a well-functioning welfare state like those in other countries doesn't fall only to the government but also to the private sector and broader community.
Community engagement and collective responsibility are integral to contributions from private entities, healthcare providers, and individuals. Local health initiatives also encourage healthy lifestyle choices and dismantle barriers to healthcare access, addressing health disparity at its roots.
Summary
The convergence of the welfare state, prescription drug price regulation, and community efforts toward equity in medical access have the potential to cause a massively important transformation in the United States.
By embracing universal healthcare as a human right, implementing policies that prioritize accessibility and affordability, and tackling patents and monopolies that are inherently discriminatory, the US can live up to its values as a nation that provides and cares for its people–––genuinely earning its well-worn "liberty and justice for all."
Existing success stories and models for imitation exist due to similar efforts by other states, such as Finland, Iceland, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. A steadfast commitment to people over profit will benefit Americans in the long run in the form of healthier and more prosperous futures.
Though the journey will be long and arduous, a more just healthcare system, where medical attention is not simply a privilege for the lucky few, is long overdue.
