The Government's Stake in the Health Care Industry

When it comes to the health care industry there are many different parties that could be considered stakeholders. Some of these groups include doctors, nurses, hospitals, and insurance companies. One particular group with a great deal at stake is the government. According to the US Census Bureau there are now over 242.2 million people in the United States with health insurance coverage. On the other hand, there remain over 43.6 million people who do have not health insurance. Between 2001 and 2002 the number of insured rose by 1.5 million. In the same time frame the number of uninsured increased by 2.4 million (http://www.census.gov, 2003, para 1). It is easy to see from these numbers that health care is a big business in the United States. In 1965 the government realized that there was a big need for the development of some new programs to help provide health care coverage for many of the country's uninsured. In 1965 the Social Security Act established two new programs, Medicare and Medicaid.

Medicare became the responsibility of the Social Security Administration (SSA). Federal assistance to State Medicaid programs was provided by the Social and Rehabilitation Service (SRS). Both of these agencies were a part of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW). In 1977, the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) was created under HEW to help coordinate Medicare and Medicaid more effectively. In 1980 HEW was divided into the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In 2001, HCFA was renamed the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (http://cms.hhs.gov/medicare/, para 1). Medicaid is a program which provides medical assistance to individuals with low income or resources. This may include pregnant women, children, people with disabilities, and a few particular exceptions

(http://cms.hhs.gov/medicaid/whoiseligible.asp, para 1). Medicare is available to most United States citizens at age 65. This program is mostly financed through the individual's payroll taxes. This is known as Part A. Part B is covered by premiums paid by each individual. Unfortunately Medicare does not cover all health care needs and many people have to purchase additional supplemental health care insurance (http://planning.yahoo.com/medic1.html, para 1). It would seem that both of these programs would be welcomed by many people. Medicaid does help to provide health care insurance to many people who would not have the coverage any other way. There are several good points to a program like this. Prevention is an important aspect to anyone's health. Giving the an individual a chance to take care of themselves also means that it will benefit the rest of the world by lowering illnesses and diseases. In the end, being able to prevent such illnesses and diseases would only decrease the over all need for health care. A large majority of the population who receive Medicaid benefits are pregnant women and children. Having the opportunity to have this health care coverage means a chance to have healthier babies. Many children who do not have coverage miss the opportunity to attend regular well-baby checks and to keep immunizations current. If prevention is such an important aspect in health care it would seem that it would be important to start with the health of children. To most recipients of Medicaid, the concept of this program would seem almost perfect.

The government, on the other hand, may not see eye to eye. With the increase of people without health care coverage comes the increase in people who will require Medicaid. This means that the government would be spending even more and more money each year. Health care is a business just like anything else. With any business comes the desire to make money. In the case of Medicaid it means the opposite for the government. Each year the funding for Medicaid seems to decrease. This means that the quality of services many not be the ideal conditions for most patients. Some people may agree with the old saying, "You get what you pay for." When it comes to health care most people would like to think they can always get the care that is needed. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. When funding is limited so are the resources. Many people are forced to deal with a great deal of red tape to get the care they are seeking. Even though having the opportunity to have this health care coverage is a welcome concept to most, it may prove to be a big headache for many others. Medicare currently provides coverage to over 40 million Americans. Unfortunately to many Americans it can be a disappointing program to deal with. The general concept of Medicare appears to be very positive.

Yet, many people may have a different point of view. Since Medicare is largely funded by the individual's payroll taxes it is not such a large financial burden on the government. On the other hand, it becomes a larger financial burden on the recipient. Many people feel that they have paid into Medicare for most of their lives and that there should not be such a need to pay even more. For many elderly the need for supplemental insurance and other monthly payments can create an overwhelming financial difficulty. Medicare and Medicaid are two programs that can provide many pros and cons for the government as well as the recipients. Money seems to often be a center of difficulty for everyone involved. As the need for these programs increase, funding decreases. This has an impact on the quality of services that are being provided. Services are continuously being added or dropped to the programs to try to save the most money for the government. These constant changes appear to be a trend that will continue for many years to come. Many people may argue that there needs to be a major reorganization of both programs. With government funding decreasing it becomes not only more difficult to pay for these medical services, but it also becomes more difficult to staff the necessary people to regulate and maintain such programs. Ideally, the government hopes to see a trend in 2003 of a larger increase of people who have health care insurance and a decrease in the need for Medicaid and Medicare.

Until this can happen it appears that the two programs will continue to operate the same way they currently are. The recipients will be forced to accept the many constant changes and only hope that one day everyone can find a happy medium in solving their health care needs. References Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (2003). Medicare Information Resource. Retrieved from the Retrieved December 5, 2003 from the World Wide Web http://cms.hhs.gov/medicare/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (2003). Welcome to Medicaid-Site for State and Territorial Government Information. Retrieved December 5, 2003 from the World Wide Web http://cms.hhs.gov/states/default.asp United States Census Bureau (2003) United States Department of Commerce News. Retrieved December 6, 2003 from the World Wide Web http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/2003/cc03-154.html Yahoo Finance (2003). What Medicare Covers. Retrieved December 5, 2003 from the World Wide Web http://planning.yahoo.com/,medic1.html