Why We Need Universal Healthcare More than Ever

America spends more on healthcare than any other country. And despite the fact that voters rank it as one of the most important issues, the healthcare system is still in shambles. Universal healthcare will not only fix the system at-large, it will also help us address the addiction crises and disparities in coverage.

The United States is one of the world’s wealthiest nations, and we spend more on healthcare than any other country. Our spending has increased 4.9% since 2019, now totaling $3.8 trillion per year. The costs continue to increase at an unsustainable rate, and quality is far from ideal. Our current system leaves much to be desired, such as becoming more patient-centered, having more fairness of treatment, and a higher quality of care.

We continue to struggle with our healthcare system. Life expectancy is shorter, obesity is higher, and the rate of maternal and infant health is higher as well, compared to other developed countries. The recent unprecedented global crisis of COVID-19 has shed light on the deficiencies of our system. Specifically, we see now how vulnerable some communities are, such as those struggling with addiction and low income. Universal healthcare has never been more crucial.

People in the United States are not satisfied with their current healthcare system and are in dire need of fundamental changes. Americans have ranked healthcare as one of the important issues when they decide on who to vote for. Our healthcare system has become more complicated, and significantly different than how it used to be. The US health system does not provide coverage to the entire population. Instead, it relies on both the combination of private insurance and various federal and state programs. Health insurance is purchased in the private marketplace or provided by the government to certain groups. Insurance goals have shifted from protecting individuals to seeking profit.

Our healthcare system is based on profit rather than the essential needs of a person. Prescription drugs are the main drivers of our expensive healthcare. Dissatisfaction can be traced back to the financial insecurity caused by inadequate insurance protection and high out-of-pocket costs. The commodification of healthcare makes our coverage both worse and more expensive than other nations.

The for-profit system has done more than inhibit care for the insured. It has also kept many people from getting insurance. In the past three years, more people continue to go uninsured from 26.7 million in 2016. The number of people who were uninsured in 2019 increased by more than one million from 2018, and by 2.2 million from 2016. That’s as if Miami, Boston, Denver, and Dallas combined were suddenly without healthcare. Recent increases in the number of uninsured nonelderly individuals occurred amid a growing economy and before the economic disaster from the pandemic which has led to millions of people losing their jobs. That means those millions didn’t lose insurance because of a bad economy, or because of unforeseen emergencies. More people have enrolled in both Medicaid and the marketplace, but the uninsured has increased further in 2020. The uninsured people are nonelderly, working families. One of the main reasons they continue to be uninsured is they cannot avoid coverage or are not eligible for it. The reason they can't be insured, and the reason they can't get coverage, is the same reason those with coverage have seen prices go up. Healthcare in this country is a for-profit industry, and as long as we see healthcare as a commodity, not as a right, it will continue to be this way.

Opponents of Universal Healthcare may argue that providing coverage for the uninsured would increase the financial burden on taxpayers. But taxpayers’ money is still being used to spend on our healthcare system. Uninsured Americans still have access to healthcare services because they receive healthcare services through public clinics and hospitals, state and local health programs, or private providers that finance the care through charity and by shifting costs to other payers. This does not mean the uninsured will not face financial burdens and insecurity. Many people cannot get money from the taxpayer, and are instead left to pay exorbitant sums themselves. The uninsured still find themselves in the emergency room of a hospital because they do not receive proper preventative medical treatment. Then it becomes too late. After the fact, it is more expensive to the taxpayer than providing it for free as preventative medicine. The fact is, Universal healthcare is the most fiscally responsible thing for our country, because preventative healthcare services can save taxpayers $4.4 billion per year.

By incorporating and adopting universal healthcare for all, many Americans do not have to worry about the financial burden associated with the outrageous healthcare bill. This does not only help vulnerable communities but every American. Universal health coverage will allow all people to have access to the health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship.

Under a form of universal healthcare, Americans will receive quality health services, from health promotion to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care across the life course. With this, we would be able to protect people from the financial burden of paying for health services, which reduces the risk that people will be in poverty. Not only does it stop people from falling into poverty, but also helps them escape it. Universal coverage would allow children to learn and adults to earn, and form a basis for long-term economic development. An unexpected illness should not be a reason for ruining their futures and their children’s. Our healthcare system fails to adequately deal with the opioid crisis, provide quality healthcare to lower-income communities, and provide help to substance abuse patients. The aspects of Universal coverage that help with these issues will also drive down the public and taxpayer burden over time.

It bears examining how Universal healthcare will help address some of these nationwide concerns. One such health issue is the opioid crisis, which claims 115 people a day. This has touched Americans everywhere. Without coverages for vulnerable populations, the opioid crisis will continue to be widespread, especially when the pandemic has increased the usage of opioids. The U.S has around 4% of the world’s population, but about 27% of the world’s drug overdose deaths.

Rates of all addiction have also risen dramatically in the past decade. The U.S is in the lead of having one of the highest death rates from substance use disorders. The crisis is due to multiple factors such as regulatory regime, culture, and socio-economic trends, and our healthcare system.Universal healthcare will make care more readily available by providing the needed treatment for people struggling with addiction.

This tragedy has played out because pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to opioid pain relievers, which led to healthcare providers prescribing them at greater rates. This is starting to increase the frequencies of opioid overdose rates. The opioid crisis is a public health crisis.

Another issue that universal healthcare will help to rectify is the unequal treatment of people of color. Racial and ethnic minorities often lack societal power, privilege, and influence. Those living in urban areas, or below the poverty level in the USA, face challenges such as accessing quality healthcare. They also usually have lower levels of health insurance coverage.

So how could a universal healthcare system create a fair treatment of all? This is possible because health insurance, physician quality, and access would no longer be tied to employment or socioeconomic level. This will let underserved communities access the quality of treatment they need. Furthermore, it could encourage physicians and hospitals to locate in rural or urban communities. Rural communities were left behind due to managed care companies ignoring the rural market. Primary care physicians are seen as an essential resource for rural healthcare; however, the imbalance is worse than ever. This shows the importance of a universal healthcare system that will let everyone experience quality and equal treatment.

Many believe universal healthcare will decrease the quality of care.Universal Healthcare, however, can be implemented while still ensuring the quality of the physicians. Universal healthcare is not against using private providers within the healthcare system, but it does emphasize the importance of quality care, so that all coverage is equal and effective at the population and individual levels. We can continue using a multi-payer healthcare system, in which subsidized healthcare is widely available for low-income citizens, but also private options that provide the same quality and level of care as the subsidized option. Rather than seek profits, our Healthcare system should be geared toward population health, while keeping in mind the interest of the individual..

The opioid crisis, addiction, and inequality of treatment to those who are vulnerable will continue to be a threat to the lives of many Americans. Our healthcare system is in shambles, making it almost impossible to overcome these crises. We spend $11,582 on healthcare per person in the United States- imagine each of us writing a personal check for that amount, and still receiving the healthcare system we have. Our current system values profit over patients - having universal healthcare will put patient needs first.