The economic crisis and COVID-19 pandemic raised much attention on the issue of health care sustainability in the U.S. Among other issues, high attention has been on financial stability and equal access. An economic policy intervention of progressive taxation with twin goals of enhancing access to quality care and advancing economic equity would be successful owing to its potential to redistribute income. The U.N. General Assembly passed a resolution by the U.S. that recommended all countries adopt Universal Health Coverage UHC in 2012 (Clabbough, 2022). Despite numerous efforts by the U.S. to improve healthcare, it is yet to employ federally funded health insurance with a unified reimbursement system.
The UHC proposal is not only about equitable healthcare but also budget and tax reform, economic transformation, and public empowerment. Progressive taxation with exemption and higher marginal rates for high-income groups would help narrow the economic gap between the rich and the poor while allowing medical affordability for the low-income population (Green, 2018). Although redistributing incomes would enable low-income people to access medical insurance, it is not the ultimate solution to the outrageous medical costs and unequal access due to hiked utilities and cost of living. The U.S. multiplayer system by public and private insurance leaves many residents insured. Therefore, a unified payment model of UHC needs to be adopted to minimize cost and guarantee insurance for all.
Tabled before Congress in 2018 and implemented in 2022, the Medicare for All Act establishes a federally administered comprehensive health insurance accessible to all. Although the reform is projected to implicate the federal budget and hence the economy, a single-player insurance approach would cut the cost of Medicare and empower the well-being of all Americans (Cai et al., 2020). In the long-term, making access to healthcare a fundamental right will promote a healthy nation and equality and mitigate the economic cost of healthcare.
References
Cai, C., Runte, J., Ostrer, I., Berry, K., Ponce, N., Rodriguez, M., & Kahn, J. G. (2020). Projected costs of single-payer healthcare financing in the United States: A systematic review of economic analyses. PLoS Medicine, 17(1), e1003013.
Clabough, J. (2022). Examining Public Policies from Progressive Democrats with U.S. Healthcare System.The Councilor: A Journal of the Social Studies, 83(2), 2. Web.
Green, S., Z. (2018). The environment, policy, and health effectiveness. In Grand Canyon University (Eds.), Community & public health: The future of health care, (1st ed.). Web.