Health Care in America

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the problems in America's overall health care policy, pointing out that the current health policy agenda does not provide a cogent cohesive approach to resolving the health problems facing the nation. The paper further points out that America's health policies focus primarily on methods of financing instead of health outcomes. The paper then examines the outcomes of those policies and how they affect the health status of Americans. Additionally, the paper explains that a new perspective on health care is required if America wants to improve the nation's health demands. The paper concludes with recommendations for three major changes in health care policies that will help the U.S. achieve the goal of a healthier nation.

From the Paper:

"One of the issues that employers must deal with, then, is the altering nature of its employees' health problems. As employers and additional major purchasers of health care take a more active role in managing the care of their covered lives, there will be increasing pressure to modify the nature of the exposure. As the two main concerns of those paying for health care are cost and outcome, there will be an increasing demand for alternatives to hospital care that are most cost-effective and result in tolerable outcomes. Otherwise, both employers and employees will continue to suffer from the mismatch. The most major issue in health status, it is now understood, is the impact on lifestyles. Lifestyle-related health problems require behavioral change. Businesses face a challenge to provide adequate incentives to daunt harmful behavior (e.g., cigarette smoking and obesity). These behaviors have been shown to reduce worker efficiency and increase health care costs. On the other hand, this aspect of illness control is not addressed by most presented insurance plans."

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