GAC008: Assessment Event 4: Academic Research Essay

Persuasion: People and Society

Student Name: Trinh Yen Nhi – Nina

Student ID#: SLIS54324

Teacher: Jack Patrick Crean

Due date: 29 May 2022

Word count: 1023

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Question: “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking

and inhumane” (Martin Luther King, Jr.). Do you agree with this statement? Write an

essay persuading readers of your point of view. Support your arguments with evidence

from appropriate sources.

According to the United Nations (2015), inequality is defined as unfairness in society, particularly

regarding status, rights, and opportunities. Inequality arises in many forms, including inequality of

outcomes, opportunities, economic inequality, political inequality, and health inequality. "Of all the forms

of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane," Martin Luther King, Jr.

famously observed (Giscombe and Hamilton, 2013). I wholeheartedly agree with this statement as

healthcare injustice and inhumanity share a common similarity. Individuals and communities suffer from

social injustice and are denied equal access to basic human necessities (Levy, 2019; Sidel, 2014). It

infringes on human rights. That is no different from inhumane treatment, as one is treated poorly based on

their background. Inequality in our existing healthcare system has resulted in substantial disparities in the

level and quantity of healthcare that different groups of people receive (Riley, 2012). There are countries

where the health care system meets the needs of the patients, and there are countries where the health care

system needs a significant overhaul to serve its patients. This paper aims to draw attention to the

significance of health disparities in society and the consequential effects they have on it and to persuade

the reader that health inequality is the most significant issue.

The first point of concern is that health inequalities are inversely proportional to disparities in wealth.

Individually, the impoverished must spend a substantially higher proportion of their income on health

care than the wealthy. In 2014, medical expenses reduced the median income of the poorest US citizens

by 47.6 percent, compared to just 2.7 percent for the richest (Chokshi, 2018). According to Hung Le

(2018), wealthy patients have better accessibility and higher-quality health care as affluents reside in large

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cities near substantial, well-equipped medical facilities (Haemmerli, 2021). Because private insurance

typically covers preventative and primary care, which helps people avoid costly medical emergencies,

wealthy patients can afford more comprehensive services (Ridic, Gleason, and Ridic, 2012). Inequity in

health care places the poor at a higher risk of illness and receiving a lower quality of care (Brundtland,

1999; Gwatkin, 2000). The average annual cost of health care for African Americans is close to 20

percent of their median family income. This is a significant cost when income disparity and income

inequality are included (Taylor, 2019). Frequently, poor families must find someone to watch their

children while they scramble to get a vehicle or bus ticket, only to spend five minutes with a doctor and

depart with a prescription that does not address their most pressing problems (Seervai, 2019).

Covid is currently an issue that requires everyone's immediate attention. Although there is a vaccination,

discrimination prevents the majority of people, particularly ethnic groups, from accessing treatment

(White and Ayoubkhani, 2020). For instance, based on an age-adjusted statistical model and excluding

those in care facilities, the mortality rate from Covid-19 for black African men is 3.8 times that of white

men in the United Kingdom. For black African women, the likelihood is 2.9 times greater than for white

women in the UK (White and Ayoubkhani, 2020). It implies that health inequities are driven by skin

color and that health disparities may be greater than ever for those from diverse and underprivileged

backgrounds. In late November, the number of vaccine doses administered per 100 people in high-income

nations was 18 times higher than in low-income ones (World Bank, 2022). These findings suggest that

demographic and socioeconomic factors are the most significant determinants of racial differences in

COVID-19-related mortality.

In the past year, the fact that uninsured adults across racial/ethnic groups were at least twice as likely not

to have visited a doctor demonstrates the importance of insurance (KFF, 2008). It indicates that the color

of one's skin determines one's health and that health disparities among people of color and those from

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disadvantaged backgrounds may be worse than they have ever been. Between 2012 and 2014, the number

of people with health insurance decreased, with the greatest decline occurring in the lowest income decile.

In the three lowest deciles of family income, the proportion of insured dropped by 8 to 10 percentage

points, whereas it fell by only one percentage point in the three highest deciles (Kaestner and Lubotsky,

2016). One-third of the U.S. population, which consists of minorities, is disproportionately uninsured.

People without health insurance are less likely to have a primary care physician, receive routine care, and

be hospitalized for preventable conditions. Notably, in 2017, 89 percent of African Americans had health

insurance, compared to 93 percent of white Americans, and 44 percent of African Americans had

government health insurance (CDC, N.D). The data presented in the preceding section indicates that

African Americans have encountered several challenges with health insurance and that their mortality risk

has reached an all-time high. Minority groups desperately need expansions of health insurance coverage

(KFF, 2008).

In conclusion, it is my belief that health inequalities are the most challenging issue worldwide. These

disparities contribute to gaps in health insurance coverage, inconsistencies in access to services, and

deplorable health outcomes for certain communities. To limit the gaps in access, there are several

recommended solutions such as expanding health insurance coverage, improving the capacity and number

of providers in underprivileged communities, and enriching the knowledge base on causes and

interventions to lessen disparities. Medicare and Medicaid's participation in income redistribution, for

instance, decreased the ratio of the 90th to the 10th percentile (the so-called 90–10 ratio) of after-tax

income distribution by around 24 percent in 1995 and by approximately 30 percent in 2012 (Kaestner and

Lubotsky, 2016). Clearly, these initiatives have the impact of lowering inequality, widely understood to

encompass more than just income. A second illustration is the Danish healthcare system. It  is versatile

and focused on free and equal access for all citizens, which helps lessen the disparity between rich and

poor individuals (Study in Denmark, N.D). Or, in Vietnam, children from birth to age six receive free

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health insurance regardless of their ethnicity (Nguyen, 2016). To conclude, in my perspective, no man,

woman, or child should be refused medical treatments based on their economic status, race, or nationality.

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Reference List

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Chokshi, D. (2018), Income, Poverty, and Health Inequality, JAMA Network [online]. Available from:

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Giscombe, C. Hamilton, N (2013), Culture of Health Blog, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation [online].

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Gwatkin, D. (2000), Health inequalities and the health of the poor: What do we know? What can we do?,

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Haemmerli, M. (2021), Poor quality for the poor? A study of inequalities in service readiness and

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Health [online]. Available from:

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Le, H. (2020), Vietnam’s Health Care System, The Borgen Project [online]. Available from:

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Seervai, S. (2019), It’s Harder for People Living in Poverty to Get Health Care, The Commonwealth

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poverty-get-health-care [Accessed 7 May 2022]

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Taylor, J (2019), Racism, Inequality, and Health Care for African Americans, The Century Foundation

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White, C., Ayoubkhani, D. (2020), Updating ethnic contrasts in deaths involving the coronavirus

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