Rights for U.S. Citizens to Thesis

Pluses:

High level of privatization as most companies offering health care insurance are private

The U.S. health care system is the most expensive in the world, meaning that the country spends most money on the health of its people; this is true in cases of both expenditure per capita as well as percentage from the gross domestic product (The Division of Lifelong Learning at the University of Maine)

Minuses:

47 million citizens in the United States are currently uninsured and their number is continuously growing; 8.7 million of the completely uninsured are children

The current legislation allows organizations to move the cost of health care to the employees, who unfortunately cannot afford these expenditures

More than 40 million people relay on the public Medicare support, but the Bush administration commenced a process of privatization of Medicare (AFL-CIO, 2009)

International comparison -- in a study conducted on the 14 most developed countries (Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States), the results for the American health care pointed out that, despite the massive costs:

The infant mortality rate remains the highest from the group

The life expectancy of the people with disabilities is the second lowest among the group

Only 40 per cent of the population is satisfied with the quality of the health care system; this places the United States on the last but one position (The Division of Lifelong Learning at the University of Maine)

5. Solutions

Given the complexity of the problem, it becomes obvious that the solution has to be tailored so that it solves the root causes at the core of the health care situation. In this order of ideas, it is necessary for the health care reform to focus on at least the following:

Force employers to cover their share of the employees' medical insurance

Ensure state medical coverage for all children

Cease the privatization of the Medicare program

Invest in the human resource at hospitals to increase their levels of performance

Offer subsidies to reduce the retail price of prescription medicines (AFL-CIO)

6. Conclusions

There is an ongoing dispute relative to the quality of health care as a basic human right; people believe however that health care is a right

The U.S. health care system is the most expensive one at a global level, but the costs are not justifiable in terms of quality of health care, access to medical services or overall health of the population

At a global level, the U.S. health care system is situated at the bottom of the leading countries

The solution to resolving the current issues is a complex one and denotes the necessity for a reform to be simultaneously implemented on several channels.

References:

Peikoff, L., Health Care Is Not A Right, Beckemeyer Development History, http://www.bdt.com/pages/Peikoff.html last accessed on December 3, 2009

2009, What's Wrong with America's Health Care, AFL-CIO, http://www.aflcio.org/issues/health care/whatswrong / last accessed on December 3, 2009

The Obama Plan, Organizing for America, The Official Barack Obama Website, http://www.barackobama.com/issues/health care / last accessed on December 3, 2009

The U.S. Health Care System -- Best in the World, or Just the Most Expensive? The Division of Lifelong Learning at the University of Maine, http://dll.umaine.edu/ble/U.S.%20HCweb.pdf last accessed on December 3, 2009

Human Rights, Homelessness and Health Care, National Health Care for the Homeless Council, http://www.nhchc.org/humanright.html last accessed on December 3, 2009

The Right to Health Care Forum, http://www.righttohealthcare.org / last accessed on December 3, 2009