More than 70% of Americans are disillusioned with the US healthcare system, and they have every right to feel that way. The US spends nearly 18% of its GDP on healthcare, yet American citizens die earlier and are less healthy than residents of other first-world countries. The US life expectancy is three times lower than the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average, and this number is mostly weighed down by people of color. This speaks volumes about racial disparity across the US and unequal access to healthcare. Other major issues, such as obesity, suicide rates, and infant mortality, plague the US healthcare system, even though the average American spends an average of $14,570 on healthcare per year.
In addition to economic disparity, Americans are living longer lives than ever before. This is causing a dramatic shift in American demographics, which inevitably leads to profound implications for the country’s healthcare system. The growing elderly population is posing new challenges for healthcare, particularly with staffing. The healthcare provider shortage is not expected to improve within the next decade, meaning that this growing, vulnerable population is not and will not be accounted for anytime soon. American medical centers are ill-equipped to handle the complex, chronic health conditions senior citizens tend to face, which leads to improper treatment. By 2050, it’s predicted that the elderly American population will increase by 40%. So, how will the healthcare system keep up with the demand?
The healthcare crisis in the US has largely been spurred by the rising costs of goods and services in the healthcare system; everything from hospital stays to emergency room visits to prescription medication has contributed to costs skyrocketing over the past decade. Although scientists and doctors all over the country are able to introduce new and innovative healthcare technologies to help their patients, these treatments are usually very expensive, limiting access to only the higher economic classes. Additionally, the for-profit motive of many healthcare organizations means that healthcare providers are no longer looking to provide affordability for customers; instead, they are seeking to drive prices higher for their own benefit. The growing costs have caused there to be over 100 million Americans living with medical debt, and individuals and families—most commonly in low-income households and communities of color—regularly have to deal with the looming threat of these financial burdens, causing many to delay or avoid care altogether.
With the high costs for medical care, most Americans have to turn to insurance—both private and public—to afford healthcare. The private insurance benefits offered by many employers often exclude gig workers, part-time employees, and undocumented workers, which causes an inequality in healthcare accessibility across class and race lines. Medicaid—the federal and state program providing health coverage to those with low income and limited financial resources—has also had a 15% cut from federal spending with the bill passed in July earlier this year, which will negatively affect millions across the country. However, even with private and public insurance options, there are still over 27 million Americans who are uninsured due to such high costs, while there continue to be plenty of other wealthy countries that are able to provide universal coverage at much lower rates.
While achieving universal healthcare coverage in the US is possible, it would require fundamental shifts within the current US healthcare system. If the country could provide healthcare to all regardless of income, it would reduce societal and economic inequality in beneficial ways. Health should be considered a basic human right in a country that claims to strive for equality.
