Why Is U.S. Healthcare So Expensive?
Since President Obama’s Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010, Congress has done everything they can to stop it. They even shut down the government for two weeks. But the reason Obamacare exists in the first place, is due to astronomically high healthcare costs. In fact, the number one reason Americans file for bankruptcy is due to medical bills. So, why exactly is US healthcare so expensive?
Well, healthcare in the United States is very different from healthcare in the rest of the world. The US is one of the only developed countries without universal healthcare for its citizens. Often times, care is treated as a commodity, rather than a necessity. Instead of prices being set by procedure cost, hospitals and insurance companies negotiate for prices that are based on bargaining power. Meanwhile, patients have almost no influence on the cost, considering that there is often no alternative to being treated.
But some have pointed out that unlike other commodities, healthcare costs tend to rise without ever going down, leading to a perpetually increasing price point. One of the reasons for this is that hospitals are responsible for treating uninsured patients. The cost of their treatment is passed on to insured patients, and is tacked onto their care. Additionally, US hospitals spend considerably more than any other country on administrative costs.
Doctors also earn much more for the same procedures than in other countries. Even drug costs are higher, as the US does not negotiate drug purchases in bulk. From top to bottom, healthcare suppliers charge Americans more money.
However, alongside providers being overcharged, some higher costs can be blamed on Americans themselves. In the US, preventative care is less stressed, and as such, Americans don’t go to the doctor until they absolutely have to. For example, in other countries, citizens avoid heart attacks by visiting the doctor more frequently. And even when they do get heart attacks, they are less likely to receive costly open heart surgery. But in the US doctors make more money for performing certain procedures. Thus there is an incentive to push expensive, and sometimes unnecessary surgeries.
Sadly, despite spending considerably more on healthcare than any other nation on earth, the US has one of the worst health care systems among developed nations. In an international profile of worldwide healthcare, the US has ranked dead last when compared to similar nations. Although the Affordable Care Act is in effect, insurers and pharmaceutical companies are still raking in billions, all while Americans suffer from a lower standard of care. Because healthcare is so expensive, many Americans are crossing borders to get dental care, heart surgery, and more
0 comments:
Post a Comment