National Health Care Spending
National Health Care Spending in the U.S.
By
Traci C Stewart
May 12, 2014
HCS/440
Stephen Larson
Introduction Health care in the United States is provided by many distinct organizations. Accordingly, the US Census Bureau (2010) reported that health care facilities are largely owned and operated by private sector businesses. While sixty-two percent of hospitals are non-profit, 20% are government owned, and 18% are for-profit. Furthermore, 60–65% of healthcare provision and spending comes from programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, the Children 's Health Insurance Program, and the Veterans Health Administration. Most of the population under 67 is either insured by themselves or a family member 's employer, buy health insurance on their own, and the remainder are uninsured. Health insurance for public sector employees is primarily provided by the government. Still, the United States has a life expectancy of 78.4 years at birth, up from 75.2 years in 1990, and is ranked 50th among 221 nations, and 27th out of the 34 industrialized countries, down from 20th in 1990. Of 17 high-income countries studied by the National Institutes of Health in 2013, the United States had the highest or near-highest prevalence of infant mortality, heart and lung disease, sexually transmitted infections, adolescent pregnancies, injuries, homicides, and disability. Together, such issues place the U.S. at the bottom of the list for life expectancy. On average, a U.S. male can be expected to live almost four fewer years than those in the top-ranked country (NIH, 2013).
Thesis Statement As dismal as the statistics are, in recent years, policy makers as well as leading economists have focused a considerable amount of attention on aggregate spending increases in health care and how health care spending impacts the United States economy. Thereby, specific emphasis has been given to identifying and examining distinctive factors that
By
Traci C Stewart
May 12, 2014
HCS/440
Stephen Larson
Introduction Health care in the United States is provided by many distinct organizations. Accordingly, the US Census Bureau (2010) reported that health care facilities are largely owned and operated by private sector businesses. While sixty-two percent of hospitals are non-profit, 20% are government owned, and 18% are for-profit. Furthermore, 60–65% of healthcare provision and spending comes from programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, the Children 's Health Insurance Program, and the Veterans Health Administration. Most of the population under 67 is either insured by themselves or a family member 's employer, buy health insurance on their own, and the remainder are uninsured. Health insurance for public sector employees is primarily provided by the government. Still, the United States has a life expectancy of 78.4 years at birth, up from 75.2 years in 1990, and is ranked 50th among 221 nations, and 27th out of the 34 industrialized countries, down from 20th in 1990. Of 17 high-income countries studied by the National Institutes of Health in 2013, the United States had the highest or near-highest prevalence of infant mortality, heart and lung disease, sexually transmitted infections, adolescent pregnancies, injuries, homicides, and disability. Together, such issues place the U.S. at the bottom of the list for life expectancy. On average, a U.S. male can be expected to live almost four fewer years than those in the top-ranked country (NIH, 2013).
Thesis Statement As dismal as the statistics are, in recent years, policy makers as well as leading economists have focused a considerable amount of attention on aggregate spending increases in health care and how health care spending impacts the United States economy. Thereby, specific emphasis has been given to identifying and examining distinctive factors that
References: Institute of Medicine (2004). Retrieved from http://.www.institutesofmedicine, May 09, 2014. National Institute of Health (2013). Retrieved from http://.www.nationalinstituteofhealth, May 10, 2014. U. S. Census Bureau (2010). Retrieved from http://.www.uscensusbureau, May 10, 2014. World Health Organization (2014). Retrieved from http://.www.worldhealthorganization, May 10, 2014. www.healthcare.gov (2014). Retrieved from http://.www.healthcare.gov. May 10, 2014