Assignment: Analysis of Foreign Healthcare Systems
Comparison of the U.S. Healthcare system with that of other countries
1. Identify and describe three different types of healthcare care financing systems in other developed countries. Be sure to address the following and provide details or examples of each:
• What services are covered/excluded
• Who pays for the healthcare provided (if the the government, state how the government gets the money)
• Quality of care
• Accessibility of care
• Affordability of care
• Private options
2. Identify one developing country and describe its healthcare system, including the elements listed above.
3. Consider the US. We spend the most money on healthcare and come in dead last on all health quality indicators.
• Is there anything related to health the US does better than other countries?
• What country could we learn the most from (if no single place, identify a collection of elements from each that would be most applicable to the US in improving our system)?
• Identify a few key changes that would need to be made in the US in order to mimic an existing system (limit the changes to 2-3 so you can discuss them more in depth).
4. Consider the principles of autonomy, capitalism, and individualism that characterize the American people and describe how those changes would fit/or not fit with changes needed to adopt another country's healthcare system.
• Based on your discussion of autonomy, capitalism, and individualism, identify any barriers to successful healthcare reform that may or may not exist in our society. If none exist, state that and explain your answer.
Looking at the reform currently occurring in the US, many people have strong opinions about the ACA and the Health Insurance Marketplace. Ironically though, only 8 million people (less than 3% of the American people) have used it. As public health professionals, it is essential you have first-hand experience with the ACA exchanges. Discuss the plans and pricing available to individuals earning your own income and those earning minimum wage (you do not have to reveal your, or any specific income - if need be, enter something fictitious). It is helpful if you add something descriptive such as, "the lowest premium available on the Marketplace for a mid-level government worker would be..."
5. Go to healthcare.gov.*
• If it is during annual enrolment (November 15-February 15), you will most likely be asked to enter your zip code and possibly income before being able to see options to either complete a Marketplace application or see "plans & pricing." Do not complete an application.
If it is outside of annual enrolment, there is an extra step. You must take a brief "pre-qualifying quiz" to ensure you are "eligible" to enroll outside of annual enrollment. First, you will be asked to enter your zip code, then you will be asked to take an eligibility quiz for coverage outside of annual enrollment. You will be presented with a list of questions that, if you answer yes to any of them, will lead you to the plans and pricing page. Click on "you are going to lose your health insurance in the next 60 days or you lost it in the last 60 days" and then "you recently got a divorce and lost your insurance." (Having/adopting a baby is an option but I don't know if you can then look at single person plans.)
1. Enter/find a plan for someone your age with your income.
o What is the lowest premium plan (name of plan, amount of monthly premium, deductible, applicable copays, ER fees, etc.)
o What is the lowest deductible plan (name of plan, amount of deductible, monthly premiums, copays, ER fees, etc.)
o If you have insurance from an employer or elsewhere, is this less than or more than what you (or your employer) are paying? By how much?
Determine what minimum wage is in your state. Enter /find a plan for someone your age making minimum age in your state.
o Provide the minimum wage and the state used for the assignment.
o What is the lowest premium plan (name of plan, amount of monthly premiums, deductible, applicable copays, ER fees, etc.)
o What is the lowest deductible plan (name of plan, amount of deductible, monthly premiums, copays, ER fees, etc.)
Are you surprised by anything you learned while on healthcare.gov?
6. Thinking about the minimum wage earner you found a plan for, even with insurance, do you think healthcare is now affordable for him/her? With the expenses related to the copays/deductibles, do you believe he/she could go to the doctor regularly with a chronic illness (diabetes, congestive heart failure, COPD? What about food poisoning? Appendicitis? The flu?
7. With that in mind, is the ACA accomplishing its goal of bringing healthcare to the uninsured?
This should be a 5 to 7 page paper (not counting the title page or reference list).
You must use a minimum of five (5) references. References MUST be from scholarly peer-reviewed journals, textbooks, etc. (Wikipedia is NOT considered a credible reference). Paper must be written in APA writing .