What is universal healthcare?
Universal health care is a broad term that encompasses any action that a government takes to provide health care to as many people as possible. Some governments do this by setting minimum standards and regulations and some by implementing programs that cover the entire population. But the ultimate goal is health coverage for all citizens. It is important to learn about the benefits and drawbacks that are often cited regarding a nationwide policy like universal health care.
Human Lives
When a person has universal health care from birth, it can also lead to a longer and healthier life, and reduce societal inequality. Lack of health insurance is associated with as many as 44,789 deaths per year which translates into a 40% increased risk of death among the uninsured. Due to a lack of timely and effective health care, the United States ranked at the bottom of a list of 16 rich nations in terms of preventable mortality. The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights stated that “everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of oneself and one’s family, including… medical care.” This can be prevented using accessible healthcare.
Lowered Costs
On the federal level, universal health care lowers health care costs for the national economy, because the government controls prices for medications and health services. The doctors themselves are able to reduce administrative costs and hire fewer staff because they’re not forced to work with a myriad of health care companies. Under a single-payer system, in which all citizens are guaranteed a right to health care, total public and private health care spending could be lowered by up to $1.8 trillion over the next 10 years due to lowered administrative and prescription drug costs.
Economic Productivity
As already mentioned, when a person has universal health care from birth, it leads to a longer and healthier life, reduced societal inequality but also makes workers miss less their jobs. Workers with health insurance miss an average of 4.7 fewer work days than employees without health insurance.
Countries with Universal Healthcare Systems
In 2018, 32 of the 33 developed countries around the world have universal healthcare. Some prominent ones include almost all of the European Union, China, New Zealand, Canada, Japan, Australia and many more. Looking at this, the fact that the United States, the so-called richest superpower of this world, does not have healthcare is very perplexing.
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