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The Us Health Care System

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Chapter Assignment 1 1. The first characteristic of the US health care system is that there is no central governing agency which allows for little integration and coordination. While the government has a great influence on the health care system, the system is mostly controlled through private hands. The system is financed publically and privately creating a variety of payments and delivery unlike centrally controlled healthcare systems in other developed countries. The US system is more complex and less manageable than centrally controlled health care systems, which makes it more expensive. The second characteristic of the US health care system is that it is technology driven and focuses on acute care. With more usage of high technology, …show more content…

Insurance however covers basic services making the US health system an imperfect market since patients are not directly generating the cost of services. The next characteristic is the government acts as a subsidiary to the private sector. The US system is largely in private hands; whatever is left is filled by the government which includes support for research and training. Another characteristic is the fusion of market justice and social justice. Market justice focuses on the fair distribution of health care on the market in a free economy. It is based on the patient’s compliance and capability of paying for their medical care. Social justice focuses on the community over the individual. This believes that the patient is unable to afford medical care. The fusion of both theories can work well together in that some people can receive insurance through employers and those that can’t, will receive insurance through the government. However, they can also create problems in that some employers cannot afford the cost of private insurance providers and the employees do not qualify for government health insurance. This leaves these people and their families uninsured. The next characteristic is multiple players and balance of powers. There are many different groups that play a role in the US health system, and each with their own interest. This

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