Impact of the U.S Government on Health Reform in the Healthcare Delivery System
Introduction
The United States is the only country in the west that didn’t put many considerations on health. Due to increased mortality rates, the United States had to step up and start to prioritize all matters of health in many sectors. Initially, the U.S. was the only country with high mortality rates but the government had to align measures to reform the health sector. The healthcare delivery systems in the U.S. had many problems that affected the operations of the systems. This affected the entire health programs and made the health systems to be deterred across the country (American Medical Association, 2020). There were a series of increased mortality rates among many infants and the old. This led to the U.S. government led by the then president, Barack Obama in 2008 to declare that health care should be a right for every American. This statement, however, doesn’t reflect on the reality of healthcare according to the statistics in recent times. Sadly, the number of American citizens who are not insured rose to over 50 million in 2010, which was very alarming. Such change sparked the government to come up with some measures to improve the health care systems in America (Obama 2016). Those measures are outlined below.
The Patient Protection Affordable Care Act (PPACA)
The introduction of PPACA was done in 2010 and had several changes to the department of U.S. healthcare, which are the reduction of pre-existing condition exemptions. It also had to restrict the yearly dollar limits on coverage, leading to the growth of insurance coverage Americans exceeding 30 million. This helped the U.S. make a step towards giving universal care to citizens. However, it was noted that the quality of service offered by PACCA was not good enough compared to what was received by the majority of the population (Obama, 2016). The medical had been expanded but had to go through a lengthy procedure hence high risks of death compared to the ones in private insurance.
When PPACA was introduced, it was not received well; many people were against it and went ahead to challenge it based on the constitution. They claimed that it was illegal for individuals to buy health insurance. Twenty-six states and other bodies of independents were against this act. They proceeded to take the case to the Supreme court in 2012. The court ordered the tax imposed on those who failed to provide minimal health coverage was allowed under congress power (American Medical Association, 2020). This helped the Americans on all matters of insurance to some extend. PPACA took the U.S. a major milestone in the matters of healthcare.
The Screening For and the Management of Obesity in Adults
The government of the U.S. drew some policies that will help in the curbing of obesity among adults. This was done through a body called The United States Preventive Service Task Force(USPSTF). This body gave updates and recommendations for the screening and management of this disease in adults. The government of U.S., by giving the guidelines for testing obesity, went ahead to provide the recommendations about obesity. Controlling the disease was a major objective. The obesity levels in the U.S. are growing at an alarming rate; it is 30% of the total population, which is very high (Ferris & Thomas, 2020). The government has set measures that will see it reduce the disease to less than 15%.
Although not all recommendations are stratified, some are not good and cannot work. The USPSTF is the only body recognized by the government that provides legit recommendations. If the USPSTF omits any recommendation, then that is the way forward. The World Health Organization had recommended for the health bodies to stratify obesity according to BMI. However, the USPSTF was not an incapacity to get accurate results due to a lack of delineation on the trials. The validity of USPSTF remains unclear due to the lack of sex and appropriate trials. Despite all the weaknesses of USPSTF, the government of the U.S. still had to come up with more and advance measures to help USPSTF to curb obesity among adults (Marouf & Esplin, 2015). The government continued to fund the USPSTF, which came up with more recommendations, no time frame was given on the implementation of the guidelines. The department of health in the U.S. launched new objectives for the people in 2020. This was mainly aimed at reducing the obese proportionality among adults.
Test Learn Adapt
The U.S. government started doing random control tests, which were costly and complex to the government. The RCTs in the health sector was initiated by Sir Bradford Hill, and it randomized patients to control Tuberculosis. RCTs have become a staple research tool to help in the health sector. This gives all the relevant evidence; they remove biasness. RCTs have helped to establish proper links between interventions and the results. As such, they give a proper assessment of the importance of drugs. Primarily the progress in society is achieved through trial and error. This implies that several options are taken in collective. Proper use of RCTs reduces the trial and error policies and market forces (American Medical Association, 2020). Scientific methods and policies are analyzed and give proper results. The U.S. government has financed and monitored the RCTs to ensure American citizens their healthcare delivery.
Human Rights in Health Care Initiatives
Rights means a justified claim. In other words, it is the entitlement of possession of some goods and service by a person. Human rights serve as a tool for humanity and development. It enables everybody to have mental and physical enjoyment. The U.S. government has set some measures to protect human rights in the field of health (Ferris & Thomas, 2020). Human rights have helped every Citizen know what he or she is eligible for health practices. The human right in the field of health care protects health care professionals and the public at large. It governs the salaries and all contracts. Human rights enabled individuals to know what to do when it comes to matters dealing with their health (Marouf & Esplin, 2015). Human rights play a key role in health care initiatives.
Healthcare Reform System and Conclusion
The U.S. is one of the only western countries that initially had not given health care good attention. Increased health problems prompt the government to form various movements which will help in providing proper facilities. Although the government still has some long way to go, it has done some remarkable steps. The government has ensured the majority of Citizens are entitled to insurance coverage. This has eased access to health facilities. The USPSTF gave some recommendations to curb obesity, but it also got some challenges. The best way to fight obesity requires the monitoring of primary health care and workers like G.P.s and dieticians of the community. However, continuous efforts and persistence are required to reach the expected standards; it is clear that this will take a lengthy period of time.
