The Pros And Cons Of Universal Health Care

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Universal health coverage allows citizens of a particular country access to health care of all kinds, should they so need it, without exposing the user to financial hardship from medical expenses. The World Health Organization has created three objectives for universal health coverage: (1) equity in access to health services – those who need the services should get them, not just those who can pay for them; (2) that the quality of health services is good enough to improve the health of those receiving services; and (3) there is financial risk protection to ensure that the cost of using care does not put people at risk of financial hardship (WHO, 2013). While virtually every developed country besides the United States has some form of universal On several occasions, legislatures were on the verge of success, but each time they faced defeat. In 1883, Germany paved the way for universal health care by beginning what was known as compulsory sickness insurance. Soon after, other countries began to follow suit. However, the primary reason for the emergence of this type of health care in Europe was not an indication as recognition on a humanitarian level, rather conceived as a means of maintaining incomes and buying political allegiance of the citizens. In 1916, legislators began to propose a bill that would have been very similar to the German model for compulsory sickness insurance; however, in 1917 the U.S. entered World War I and an anti-German fever resulted (Palmer 1999). Americans soon began to show their distaste for what was dubbed “German Socialist Insurance,” and that resulted in the end of the debate for universal health care for some time. In the 1930s, the debate for universal health care was brought up again; however, no action was taken until 1965, when President Johnson signed Medicare and Medicaid into law for the elderly and One belief is that the U.S. can simply not afford to cover the uninsured, even though other countries have proven this wrong (Palmer 1999). A second belief, which is mostly believed by medical professionals, is that they will lose more power than what they have already lost under corporate managed care, yet universal health care elsewhere has given the profession more power and flexibility. A third belief is that universal health care means that it is based solely on a single-tax payer system, which is completely false, as many countries operate on different systems. A fourth, erroneous belief held by many Americans is that the U.S. is simply too large to take lessons from smaller countries on health care. Lastly, a fifth reason Americans disfavor universal health care is because conservative lawmakers have poisoned their minds with the belief that it would mean lower salaries, higher taxes, longer wait times, and run-down government hospital facilities (Light 2003). Due to the information received by legislation and put out there on the media, it’s no surprise why, in the year 2015, lawmakers are still debating universal health care and trying to repeal the Affordable Care

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