WEEK 7: INTERNATIONAL HEALTHCARE
Choose one aspect of international healthcare that you would implement in the United States
through legislation or other means? (Be specific with rationale and justification and details about legal
and ethical implications of your proposed change.)
The U.S. healthcare system is very different than the other advanced countries in the world. There is no
uniformity in coverage, not universal coverage and costs are out of control. According to Armour (2019),
the number of Americans without health insurance climbed to 27.5 million in 2018, following years of
steady declines in the number of uninsured. The U.S. healthcare system is in desperate need of an
overhaul and the healthcare system needs to help the rising number of uninsured as well as those facing
the rising costs of their healthcare premiums.
Many countries (like Japan, Switzerland, Germany and the United Kingdom) have worked to make
bankruptcies that result from medical expenses negligible. In the U.S., however, most consumers who
declare bankruptcy, do so mainly due to medical expenses. According to Hiltzik (2017), a 2014 survey of
bankruptcies that were filed between 2005 and 2013, found that medical bills are the single largest
cause of consumer bankruptcy, with between 18 percent and 25 percent of cases directly prompted by
medical debt. “Another survey found that in 2013, 56 million Americans under the age of 65 had trouble
paying medical bills. Another 10 million will face medical bills they are unable to pay despite having
year-round insurance” (Department of Professional Employees – AFL-CIO, 2019).
In 2006, the state of Massachusetts enacted the Massachusetts Health Care Reform Bill. It is the only
state that has almost no uninsured and this bill predates the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 by
several years.
The essence of the legislation is a mandate that everyone in the state have health insurance if affordable
coverage is available (an individual mandate), an assessment on employers that do not provide coverage
to their workers, a purchasing arrangement—the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector—
designed to make affordable insurance available to individuals and small businesses, and premium
subsidies to make coverage affordable (Holahan & Blumberg, 2006).
So far it appears the state has been successful in making health care more affordable and accessible for
its residents. For 2017 and 2018, the Massachusetts Health Connector had the lowest average premiums
of any Marketplace in the country for 2017 and 2018) Morse Gasteier, Brice & Woltmann, M. (2018).
Sources:
Armour, S. (2019). Number of Uninsured Americans Rises for First Time in Decade. Retrieved from
https://www.wsj.com/articles/number-of-americans-without-insurance-shows-first-increase-since2008-
11568128381
Department of Professional Employees – AFL-CIO. (2019). The U.S. Health Care System: An International
Perspective. Retrieved from https://dpeaflcio.org/programs-publications/issue-fact-sheets/the-u-s-
health-care-system-an-international-perspective/
Hiltzik, M. (2017). Another Little-Mentioned Benefit of Obamacare: It Has Reduced Medical
Bankruptcies. Retrieved from https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-hiltzik-obamacare-medical-
bankruptcies-20170510-story.html
Holahan, J. & Blumberg, L. (2006). Massachusetts Health Care Reform: A Look at the Issues. Health
Affairs. Retrieved from https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.25.w432
This study source was downloaded by 100000801755870 from CourseHero.com on 03-14-2022 11:08:40 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/54075389/HSM542-Week-7-Discussionpdf/
Choose one aspect of international healthcare that you would implement in the United States
through legislation or other means? (Be specific with rationale and justification and details about legal
and ethical implications of your proposed change.)
The U.S. healthcare system is very different than the other advanced countries in the world. There is no
uniformity in coverage, not universal coverage and costs are out of control. According to Armour (2019),
the number of Americans without health insurance climbed to 27.5 million in 2018, following years of
steady declines in the number of uninsured. The U.S. healthcare system is in desperate need of an
overhaul and the healthcare system needs to help the rising number of uninsured as well as those facing
the rising costs of their healthcare premiums.
Many countries (like Japan, Switzerland, Germany and the United Kingdom) have worked to make
bankruptcies that result from medical expenses negligible. In the U.S., however, most consumers who
declare bankruptcy, do so mainly due to medical expenses. According to Hiltzik (2017), a 2014 survey of
bankruptcies that were filed between 2005 and 2013, found that medical bills are the single largest
cause of consumer bankruptcy, with between 18 percent and 25 percent of cases directly prompted by
medical debt. “Another survey found that in 2013, 56 million Americans under the age of 65 had trouble
paying medical bills. Another 10 million will face medical bills they are unable to pay despite having
year-round insurance” (Department of Professional Employees – AFL-CIO, 2019).
In 2006, the state of Massachusetts enacted the Massachusetts Health Care Reform Bill. It is the only
state that has almost no uninsured and this bill predates the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 by
several years.
The essence of the legislation is a mandate that everyone in the state have health insurance if affordable
coverage is available (an individual mandate), an assessment on employers that do not provide coverage
to their workers, a purchasing arrangement—the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector—
designed to make affordable insurance available to individuals and small businesses, and premium
subsidies to make coverage affordable (Holahan & Blumberg, 2006).
So far it appears the state has been successful in making health care more affordable and accessible for
its residents. For 2017 and 2018, the Massachusetts Health Connector had the lowest average premiums
of any Marketplace in the country for 2017 and 2018) Morse Gasteier, Brice & Woltmann, M. (2018).
Sources:
Armour, S. (2019). Number of Uninsured Americans Rises for First Time in Decade. Retrieved from
https://www.wsj.com/articles/number-of-americans-without-insurance-shows-first-increase-since2008-
11568128381
Department of Professional Employees – AFL-CIO. (2019). The U.S. Health Care System: An International
Perspective. Retrieved from https://dpeaflcio.org/programs-publications/issue-fact-sheets/the-u-s-
health-care-system-an-international-perspective/
Hiltzik, M. (2017). Another Little-Mentioned Benefit of Obamacare: It Has Reduced Medical
Bankruptcies. Retrieved from https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-hiltzik-obamacare-medical-
bankruptcies-20170510-story.html
Holahan, J. & Blumberg, L. (2006). Massachusetts Health Care Reform: A Look at the Issues. Health
Affairs. Retrieved from https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.25.w432
This study source was downloaded by 100000801755870 from CourseHero.com on 03-14-2022 11:08:40 GMT -05:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/54075389/HSM542-Week-7-Discussionpdf/
