Week 1 Discussion: The Role of Government in the U.S. Health Care System

The proper role of government in health care: As stated in the course text, Health Care Delivery in the United States, “the health care enterprise is one of the most important parts of the U.S. social system and of our economic system as well” (Kovner and Knickman, 2011, p. 4); however, with millions of citizens uninsured, rising costs, massive health disparities, and the need to improve quality and access, many view health care as a broken system. As such, it continues to be a significant political issue in the United States. Most agree that something needs to be done to fix the health care system, but the methods and solutions for addressing problems vary greatly, particularly with respect to the role government should play. Proponents of varying approaches often have strong, emotional opinions, making compromise difficult.

In this Discussion, you will consider the role of government in health care, and you will examine the impact of a social, economic, technological, ethical, or legal issue on health care delivery.

To prepare for The proper role of government in health care:

With this week’s Learning Resources in mind, consider this question: Is health care a right or a privilege?

Review the media presentation for this week, focusing on the role of the government in health care including Affordable Care Act.

Pinpoint a social, economic, technological, ethical, or legal issue that could, or has, affected health care delivery in the United States.

Locate a current article from the popular press (within the past 6 months) related to the health care issue you identified. How does this article inform your understanding of the influence of your selected issue in the health care debate?

By Day 3

Post your position on whether health care in the United States is a right or a privilege, and explain what you believe to be the proper role of government in health care. Justify your position. Explain how the social, economic, technological, ethical, or legal issue you selected is impacting health care delivery and whether this issue should be addressed by the government or by private entities. Identify the article you selected, and explain how this article informs your stance.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses. Focus particularly on those questions raised to which you can add comments based on shared experiences or situations. Consider how your colleagues’ postings reflect and/or differ from your own perceptions and opinions.

By Day 6

Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days in one or more of the following ways:

Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence, or research using an in-text citation in APA format.

Share an insight from having read your colleagues’ postings, synthesizing the information to provide new perspectives.

Offer and support an alternative perspective using readings from the classroom or from your own research in the Walden Library.

Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.

Make a suggestion based on additional evidence drawn from readings or after synthesizing multiple postings.

Expand on your colleagues’ postings by providing additional insights or contrasting perspectives based on readings and evidence.

Reference:

Kovner, A. R., & Knickman, J. R. (Eds.). (2011). Health care delivery in the United States (10th ed.). New York, NY: Springer Publishing.

Click on the Reply button below to reveal the textbox for entering your message. Then click on the Submit button to post your message.