US Population Growth and its demands on the enviroment, economy and national healthcare - Research Paper Example

? U.S. Population Growth and its Demands on the Environment, Economy and National Healthcare In regard to the Census Bureau of the United States, the population of the nation shall reach about 419 million people by 2050, and become as high as 1.2 billion people by 2100 (Hinde, 1998). With such projections, the issues of population in the United States are alarming and are a threat to resources and the general environment. Whenever discussing any controversial thoughts of population control, everyone in this country must reflect on the impacts of overpopulation either on the environment, economy, and national healthcare. Background The population growth of the United States is ever increasing by about 3 million people per year (Hinde, 1998). Indeed, the overpopulation issue does not exist in the vacuum. The main reason for overpopulation is not because people do not know the main ideas on birth control processes; however, it is due to the immigration of people from other foreign countries (Alejandro & Rumbaut, 1990). In fact, almost 50 percent of the United States population is due to immigration. Worldwide, the main reaction to carrying capacity setbacks would be to migrate to regions where the carrying capacity does not seem to be pushed beyond the maximum level, or it is perceived to provide opportunities. In most cases, much of the United States’ immigration is fueled by this conception, but the immigrants tend to forget that the United States does not possess endless resources. Such wrong perceptions of immigrants do not only cause injustices to the carrying capacity of the many states in the country, but also many other overpopulation components, including environmental damage, social disruption, and even unemployment (Regoeczi, 2002). Demands on the environment Perhaps, the main devastating demands of overpopulation could be seen in the United States’ environs. The United States is believed to be responsible for over 22 percent of the industrial emissions of carbon dioxide of the world (Barlow, 1994). Such carbon dioxide emissions are the main cause of global warming. The results of this global warming are the damaged ozone layer. With an already destroyed ozone layer, it is not ignorable that the Americans keep on producing a lot of air pollutants that perhaps one day could become hazardous and even get to other regions in the world. Apart from pollution, there exist reasons for concerns regarding the farmland, wildlife, and forestry. It is because of overpopulation that United States has lost a lot of its wetlands, old-growth forests, and on a routine basis go on loosing many miles of land to developments. While a lot of factors such as forests, pollutants, energy, etc. could be those chosen to demonstrate the limitations of overpopulation on the carrying, reflection of striking example is water. Indeed, many areas within the United States, be it the central, west, and even southwest states, mostly those experiencing the rapid growth in population are inflicted either with shortages of water or contaminated water due to pollution. The demand on resources that lead to damages of forestry has caused many states in the United States face limited rainfall. Other naturally occurring water sources have also been limited resulting in serious depletion and even pollution of the ground water. Clean water is essential to the people of the United States. Carrying capacity of such limited water areas that extend many states is really a threat to the human life. It is notable that, the outcomes of overpopulation demands on the environment are negative. Resources get depleted that the environment becomes disregarded to a certain point that, many regions in the United States lose most of their capacity to support a dense population. Whenever the carrying capacity becomes exceeded, the damage to the environment is normally very severe that the carrying capacity of population for upcoming generations is highly reduced. The chains of the events regarding overpopulation demands are not only just true for the Bangladesh, Amazon rain forest, Central America, or the deforested Nepal, the realities of overpopulation on the environment is true for the entire United States. Demands on the economy Basic economics could be explaining that the increase in population could be increasing consumption and generation, resulting in stability. This would sound simple as it is, but what would happen when a population is consuming that which is more than yielded. There is no doubt that, the U.S population growth will demand more economic resources such that the country will continually loose its capacity to export food (Barlow, 1994). The rationale is that; the United States could not be thinking of exporting food while its increased population requires food. In fact, populations will normally tend to exceed past the food supply natural levels. As a result, overpopulation indicates a decline in the per capita GDP (Gross Domestic Product) which measures the wealth of a country per individual. As the population of the United States continues to explode, the economy globally will in the long run have severe problems with demand and supply due to the United States’ enormous per capita in material consumption. There is no doubt that migrants come to U.S. in search of the white, color jobs. With such perception, overpopulation caused by immigration is highly felt by the working class population. With that stable supply of legal migrants searching for jobs, few jobs become available to the natives (Granatir, 2007). Increase in labor force within the United States makes wages remain low. With such low wages, it would signify that people should reduce their living standards and cope up with their small salaries. Income shortages have a detrimental effect on economic growth. With shortages in income, people have little to save as well as invest. This would be meaning that, economic growth in the United States is reducing. It is noteworthy that most immigrants who come to the United States are either unskilled, semiskilled and in the real essence poor. The main fact is that they compete with the native’s unemployed, poor, homeless for housing, opportunities and employment. It would sound unfair for the poor and unemployed immigrants to raise competition when the United States lacks unlimited, social and natural resources or unlimited budgets and jobs. Most economic activities testify the predicaments caused by overpopulation i.e., resource shortages, environmental ills, overcrowded cities, and budget deficits. As far as the labor force would be complaining of low incomes, the whole notion just sounds brilliant to the industrial sector of the United States. In this case, the U.S population growth carries with itself some benefits. United States is an industrialized nation that requires a stable supply of cheap labor. Such cheap labor is supplied by most of the unskilled or semiskilled immigrants. Most of the immigrants, who search for employment in the United States have higher chances of securing labor to staff in the manufacturing plants and even occupy the many menial service positions. As a result, industries are able to maximize production while reducing the many labor costs normally incurred during the production process (Barlow, 1994). Such industries have the capacity to remit heavily to state, local or federal government and support the economic development activities. Demands on the national healthcare Rapid growth in the population within the United States has changed the demographic look of the American society. Such changes in the demography have generated a lot of demands on healthcare activities and even affecting healthcare business related activities. The areas of business activities in healthcare demanded by the United States population include hospitals; biomedical, assisted living, and even vitamins and supplements. Hospitals in the United States are business related activities which offer given levels of out and inpatient care. Many hospitals offer ambulatory care clinics and even the emergency departments. The sheer growth in population projected in the United States shall hike the demands for hospital delivered services of health care. In fact, most of the growth in population projected in the nation reflects an unbalanced growth between the populations of the elderly sub-groups. High growth of the elderly portion of the population probably increases the demand for ambulatory care delivery and the in-patient hospital care. Typically, the elderly individuals are prone to complicated diseases that require frequent access and care within the health care system (Cutler, Rosen & Vijan, 2006). Quality care delivery is the main aim for the provision of health care. High populations in the United States will mean hiring more nurses and physicians. The adequate supply of suitably professional healthcare experts shall demand a lot from the government budgets. In the real essence, any clinical education and even nursing can be termed as expensive. However, the expansion of new educational capacity premeditated to meet up the students’ demands has been slow or even nonexistent. Both nursing and its allied programs of health care have had a high dependence on the budgets of the state. Even, when policy makers in the state realize the need for health care services, the issue has been controversial since funds are also needed in other critical areas. This signifies that; with the continued growth in the United States’ population, budgets will continue being in deficit because a lot funds are required to maintain appropriate healthcare for the growing population. (Thorpe, 2005) The population growth at the same time will result in health professional crisis. Remedies When putting into consideration these devastating demands of overpopulation in the United States, it can be conclusive that the government must pursue the policies for controlling overpopulation so as to uphold or rather preserve the quality of life of everyone. The mostly widely accepted and the essential to be acted upon are the policies for controlling immigration into this country. As it can be noted, the policies of immigration control must be affected because projections show that most of the United States population is that from the immigrants. While it seems unworkable to cease welcoming immigrants in the United States, it is certainly practical and reasonable to trim down the quantities of legal immigrants accepted into the country, and also step up to the remedies of effectively handling the thousands of illegitimate immigrants that come to the United States every year. However, there exists a population in the United States that has no knowledge regarding family planning. In this case, the government must try the best in improving contraceptives through their access, focusing on family planning education; ensure tax benefits for small families. Indeed, there is no doubt that if the government effect measures that ensure a negative growth in population, the lives of Americans will improve due to the terminated overpopulation negative effects on the environment, economy and the national healthcare resources. References: Alejandro, P., & Rumbaut, R. (1990). Immigrant America. A Portrait Berkeley: University of California Press, Barlow, R. (1994). Population Growth and Economic Growth: Some More Correlations. Population and Development Review, 20, 153–165. Cutler, D., Rosen, A., & Vijan, S. (2006). The Value of Medical Spending in the United States, 1960-2000.  New England Journal of Medicine, 355, 920-927. Granatir, J. A. (2007). Daily Life in Immigrant America, 1870–1920: How the Second Great Wave of Immigrants Made Their Way in America. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee. Hinde, A. (1998). Demographic Methods. New York: Oxford University Press. Regoeczi, W. C. (2002). The Impact of Density: The Importance of Nonlinearity and Selection on Flight and Fight Responses. Social Forces, 81, 505–530. Thorpe, K. E. (2005). The Rise in Health Care Spending and What to Do About It.  Health Affairs, 24(6), 1436-1445. Read More