Mohamed Abdelmoumen

Arguments for Change Draft

4/26/2020
Professor Barton

The United States is known for the many great services it provides for its people. This

may come as no surprise due to the United States being among the top countries in the world in

terms of wealth and in creating opportunities for its people. However, many of these services can

be flawed. One service in particular is the healthcare system. This system can be considered as

flawed due to how it does more harm than good for many Americans. An attempt should be

made to fix this current health care system due to its problems with access, racial and gender

discrimination, and financial issues within the system.

It is well known that the United States struggles with providing all of its people with

adequate health care coverage. In 2015, 29 million people in the United States went without

health care for the entire year. What makes this statistic even scarier is at that time, this number

was projected to increase by 22 million. Although there are many factors that can lead to this

high number, ultimately it is the blame of the system. The system relies on employers to provide

insurance and does not provide insurance for many immigrants. This shows how weak this

system is in providing good health for all. Employers cannot be held responsible for providing

coverage for their employees. It does not only leave them with financial issues, but also affects

the employees themselves financially. A lot of the health insurance programs that employers are

offered are extremely expensive. Therefore, they either do not offer employees insurance or they

make them pay for some of it. This then leads to many employees not even using the insurance

provided to them due to the high costs. Since many employed Americans go through this, it is

evident that employer insurance doesn't really help with the problem of insurance coverage. As
for immigrants it's a different situation. Many undocumented immigrants fear deportation when

trying to access health care. The system shows no sympathy and has not provided a way for these

people to have access to health care without fearing deportation. In other words, they are forced

to choose between good health or staying in the United States. For those who are documented,

they are not granted access until they have lived 5 years in the United States. With all this being

said, the system must find a way for everyone to be taken care of. It is clear that the way they are

running things at the moment leaves many without insurance. Although it may seem like private

insurance is a big factor in the lack of access, the issue may not be a matter of whether public

insurance or private insurance causes problems, as both have a lot of issues. Public insurance like

Medicaid has weird qualification requirements that leaves many Americans stuck without

insurance. Therefore, debating over public vs private insurance should be stopped, and more

focus should be put on how everyone can gain access. Those who lack insurance do not only

miss out on immediate care, but also preventive care. This can be detrimental as preventive care

is the way that many harmful diseases are stopped.

Another major issue with the current healthcare system is the amount of discrimination

that is present in the system. Minorities and Women do not experience the same benefits of

healthcare that others do. There is a major difference in the quality that minorities receive. Even

when factors such as income, age, and insurance status are the same, the quality of healthcare

can still depend on race or ethnicity. For example, black patients receive older and cheaper

treatments, are discharged earlier, and are more likely to receive unwanted treatments like

amputations or drugs with harmful side effects. In addition, minorities lead the numbers in those

who lack access to healthcare. As stated before, immigrants have a hard time receiving care.

Hispanics have the largest portion of its people uninsured in the United States, followed by
African Americans, Asians, and then non-Hispanic whites. Although women do not usually have

the same issue with access, they do also struggle with quality of care when compared to males.

Women can find it hard to find female physicians, which is detrimental because women receive

better care under female physicians. Women can also experience lack of counseling on health

issues such as contraception’s, STI’s, and physicians willing to proceed with abortions. In

addition, there are health situations where men are more likely to survive due to gender bias.

Innovations in biology are being made based on the male body and medical students are taught

that the average patient is a 75 kg male. This issue of discrimination cannot be taken lightly and

it affects the health of many in the United States. Health care should be put into place with the

intention of benefiting all Americans, not just a few. What makes this matter worse is the fact

that the health of minorities cannot be controlled in their own hands. No matter how much of a

healthy lifestyle a group of people may have, their health status can decrease significantly if the

people who treat them do not provide equal treatment. Also, even if the health care system

improves its other issues with access and finances, it will still be considered as flawed if

discrimination is still present in the system. If minorities and women do not receive equal care,

then their health status will be poor. A good healthcare system does not allow only some of its

people to receive adequate care.

Finally, the last concerning flaw of this current healthcare system is the financial issues.

These issues are various and do not belong to one specific source. A lot of money is spent on this

system, however, it is evident that a lot of the money that is spent is being wasted. In this system,

prices are always being raised and yet the quality of care still stays the same. Compared to other

top countries, Americans still live shorter lives and bear more chronic diseases. A lot of money is

wasted on programs that do not work. Yet even if they do not show results they are still invested
in. In addition, there are debates over whether or not private or public insurance is the reason

why money is being wasted. However, as stated before, both programs lack satisfactory results,

“Neither single-payer nor private insurance presently give patients valid comparative information

to know which providers are better for less, nor incentives to choose them if they did” (McClure

2017.) In addition, “The National Academies estimate at least 30 percent of health expenditures

are waste, of little or no benefit and possible risk to good health results.” (McClure 2017.) Many

unnecessary services are being provided to patients due to the lack of coordination in the system.

Another wasteful expenditure is the amount invested in health technology. Electronic medical

records do not keep useful records and show little of what doctors actually do. Also, Health IT

systems don't provide health professionals with evidence and quality feedback. Some health

professionals even prefer the old fashioned pen and paper due to how simple it is and how they

can easily access records. Another financial issue is how much this system costs Americans.

Many Americans go bankrupt because of the high prices that they may come across through this

system. “An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that the average family of 4 paid

$7726 in premiums and cost sharing in 2018. Those unlucky enough to have severe chronic

illness in the family spent an average of $87,870 in 2017” (Hoffer 2019.) These health insurance

programs do not cover all the financial burdens. Plans vary on how much they actually cover and

how much is paid with deductibles. In addition, many of the drugs and treatments given to

customers can be provided at a much cheaper price. For example, certain surgeries that are done

at specialized hospitals can be taken care of at community hospitals. There are also very loose

restrictions on how much pharmaceutical companies can charge on drugs. They usually charge

the highest they can get away with. With all the financial issues, this leads to the unfortunate link

between a person and their health status being their income. It is common for Americans with
high incomes to have better health than those with low incomes. With all of this being said, it is

evident that the way money is controlled in this system should be changed. Americans should not

be faced with a financial burden when trying to maintain their health. The health of Americans

should not be based on how much they pay for their health. Even when they do pay they do not

receive the results they pay for. The money that is continually being wasted because of a lack of

coordination could possibly be used for other Americans. Even if fixing wasteful expenditures

may not help all Americans, that money being wasted can go to other things like covering

Americans currently without health care.

With this topic always being heavily debated, there are arguments over the points stated

before. Some may say that providing all Americans with health coverage is really expensive,

considering how large the United States is. In addition, many fear the extra taxes they will have

to pay in order to help the government pay for everyone's healthcare. While this may be true,

many have to understand that by providing everyone healthcare, it can be considered as a public

investment. By investing in the public’s health, there will be a healthier population. A healthier

population will lead to a healthier country. With the country in good health, it will be more

productive. Healthy Americans lead to a healthier workforce. With a healthy workforce, the

economy will benefit greatly. Therefore, the taxes paid by everyone will prove to be a good

investment. The United States cannot stay at the top with its people lacking health care, as

sickness is costly. One may also argue that reforms to healthcare access in the current healthcare

system may not be able to put into place due to the fact that these reforms consist of socializing

medicine, which can be hard to put into place. However, reforms to the system do not necessarily

have to be socialized medicine. An example can be the expansion of Medicare. Medicare has

worked really well in the United States. It has really helped the elderly over the past 40 years. All
physicians and hospitals accept Medicare, and since it is not socialized medicine, there are no

rationing or long waiting lists. If Medicare could become more loose with its qualifications,

many more Americans will be able to gain healthcare access. Finally, one may also argue that a

system like Medicaid is sufficient, as it helps cover those with low incomes and they are the ones

who would need government assistance. However, Medicaid has strict qualifications and varies

state by state. The smallest increase to someone's income can cause them to be ineligible for

Medicaid. Therefore, leaving them uninsured with the only option of paying for coverage that is

too expensive for them. It is also hard to find physicians that accept Medicaid. This is because in

many states, Medicaid does not pay physicians as much as Medicare and Private Insurance

companies do. With that being said, it is clear that although Medicaid is beneficial for many, it

still has problems that makes it difficult for many other people to access healthcare.

The current healthcare system is in a complex situation in which many changes must be

put into place. There are varying issues with access, discrimination, and finances in this system.

Complications prevent many from gaining healthcare access they need, discrimination prevents

many from receiving at minimum satisfactory care, too much money is being wasted, and certain

aspects of healthcare are too expensive. No healthcare system in the world is perfect and this

current system does help a lot of people. However, for many others it does more harm than good,

and change is needed so that everyone can benefit from this system.
 Works Cited:

Bodenheimer, T., & Grumbach, K. (2016). Understanding Health Policy: A Clinical Approach, 7e.

Retrieved March 29, 2020, from http://accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?

bookid=1790§ionid 

Bridges, K. M. (n.d.). Implicit Bias and Racial Disparities in Health Care. Retrieved March 29, 2020,

from https://www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/the-

state-of-healthcare-in-the-united-states/racial-disparities-in-health-care/ 

Examining Gender Bias in Medical Care. (n.d.). Retrieved March 29, 2020, from https://www.cedars-

sinai.org/research/news/cedars-science/2019/examining-gender-bias-in-medical-care.html 

Dalen , J. E. (2009, August). Only in America: Bankruptcy Due to Health Care Costs. Retrieved March

29, 2020, from https://amjmed.org/only-in-america-bankruptcy-due-to-health-care-costs/ 

Doebbeling, B., & Flanagan, M. (2011). Emerging Perspectives on Transforming the Healthcare

System: Key Conceptual Issues. Medical Care, 49(12), S3-S5. Retrieved March 27, 2020, from

www.jstor.org/stable/23053715

Hoffer, E. P. (2019, December). The American Health Care System Is Broken. Part 7: How Can We Fix

It? Retrieved March 29, 2020, from https://www-sciencedirect-

com.mutex.gmu.edu/science/article/pii/S0002934319308800

McClure, Walter, et al. “Universal Health Coverage? Why?” Universal Health Coverage? Why? |

Health Affairs, 25 July 2017, www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20170725.061210/full/.

Smith, M. A., & Usatine , R. P. (2019). The Color Atlas and Synopsis of Family Medicine, 3e. Retrieved

March 29, 2020, from http://accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?bookid=2547§ionid