I have learned that young adults are least likely to have health insurance. (28.6% of people ages 18-24). This number is shocking. I remember talking to a 22-year-old girl about this at my work last week. She told me that she was feeling extremely sick. I replied, "You need to go see a doctor." She then told me that she does not have health insurance. Sounding very naive I replied, "Who doesn't have health insurance?" As of today, I thought that health insurance was a necessity and that it was easy to obtain. However, I was very wrong.
The uninsured are less likely to go to the doctor's for check-ups or routine care. Which leads to them being more likely to be hospitalized for a preventable illness. However, in their defense, the cost of health care has consistently risen faster than the rate of inflation. I can see many people's mentality of thinking that they can simply avoid being sick and save all that money. However, I believe that health care is very important- ESPECIALLY for children! Your health is what keeps you alive! Americans have the lowest life expectancy among 30 industrialized nations. Just think about all the preventable deaths of adults and even children that we could have saved by making health insurance more affordable.
In order to lower these figures the government must expand health care coverage and make it more easily accessable to the public. President Obama has also signed a health care law that will help poor families recieve adequate health care. According to Teegardin's article, Elements of health care law taking effect, the Patent Protection and Affordable Care Act will help give families more options. Although this act will raise taxes, it will allow parents to keep their children on their family health insurance until the age of 26. This will hopefully help to eliminate worry in families that cannot cover health insurance for their children.
Back to the question, Why you believe people are poor in the United States?
I believe that the number one answer is to this question is: lack of money. People need adequate money in order to have necessities such as health care. Minimum wage needs to be raised so that people can live comfortably as well as recieving proper health care. As a result we can lower our numbers of infant mortality as well as resolve people's illness's before they become deadly.
It's interesting that you brought that up in the beginning of this blog about your co-worker. A couple of weeks ago one of my co-workers (who is 24) was extremely sick so I told her to go to the doctor and that was her same response. I also thought to myself "Why don't you have health insurance?" But after this session and talking to my parents I learned the insurance isn't inexpensive and if your full time job is at a restaurant making 11.50, insurance isn't going to be something easily accessible to you.
ReplyDeleteI'm also hoping that this new health care reform is more beneficial than hurtful to the country.
Health care reform in the U.S. is something that has been desperately needed for some time now. I've had employer based health insurance for about 15 years now and I have consistently seen my premiums go up and my coverages go down. The way insurance plans are set up if you were to have a major medical emergency due to the maximum benefit amounts of most insurance plans coupled with the cost of actually being in the hospital one can easily find themselves under extreme financial duress pretty quickly. You raise a good point about the life expectancy in the U.S. being so low considering that we have the highest cost for health care.....it seems like we're getting ripped off doesn't it.
ReplyDeleteNow imagine if you don't have any health insurance or access to funds or quality physicians?
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