Health Policy Issue on lack of Preventive health Care in the Uninsured - Research Paper Example

Health policy issue on lack of preventive health care amongst the uninsured Task: Health policy issue on lack of preventive health care amongst the uninsuredBackground Attributable to the lack of medical insurance, many individuals die every year in the United States. Majority of those affected are the adults with chronic illnesses, especially persons above 65. It is vital to have medical insurance, since without it there will be increased number of individuals who lack preventive care. Moreover, the lack of insurance can result into delayed medical care, which leads to premature deaths.

The medical bills for the individuals without insurance are usually higher. Hence, this makes it hard for such individuals to pay for their bills. Failure to pay for medial bills by the uninsured people can result into the increase in costs for the insured ones through higher premiums. According to the health policy regarding the insurance coverage, the people between the ages of 55 to 65 do not qualify for the public insurance coverage, yet they are the ones with many medical problems. The government should ensure that the uninsured persons can access the public insurance covers (Georgetown University, 2003).

Who/What is affected by the Issue The adults are not as healthy as the younger ones; therefore, they need preventive care regularly. The large percentages of adults have chronic illnesses and cannot access the preventive health care. Persons who can access the private insurance constitute a small percentage (Georgetown University, 2003). Moreover, the only adults of age 55 to 65 who get public insurance are the disabled and they are very few. Since the people without the insurance mostly get primary care at emergency rooms, there are increased risks of overstraining of their organisms by traumas.

This makes it difficult for the emergency rooms to deal with traumas. The overburdening of the emergency rooms can lead to the increase of the local taxes (Georgetown University, 2003). Many old people die due to late diagnosis of chronic illnesses which can be screened and treated in time. Those who have the insurance regularly go for checkups; therefore, the screening of the chronic diseases like cancers can be more effective. Additionally, the lack of insurance can make individuals go without health care.

This is because the uninsured are more likely to spend more on the medical services compared to the insured individuals, since they pay more of their medical fees from their pockets. The prescription drugs for the chronic diseases are very expensive, especially for the uninsured elder individuals. Inability to pay for the health care due to its high costs makes most of the people live without the preventive health care (McCall, 2004). Current barriers of facilitators regarding issue Lack of employment and low income hinders most people from getting the cover, since they are unable to pay for the high cost of the preventive health care insurance.

Additionally, the many individuals do not pay for the insurance, because they are not aware of the benefits of the insurance cover (McCall, 2004). Recommended solution and related actions To reduce the number of the elderly who are hospitalized for the problems which could be prevented if they received the outpatient care in time, the government should ensure that the individuals of all ages access the public insurance. The preventive health care insurance costs should be lowered to ensure that all the individuals easily access the cover.

There should be more awareness programs to encourage more people to pay for the insurance covers (McCall, 2004).ReferencesGeorgetown University. (2003). Insurance matters for people with chronic conditions. Retrieved from http://ihcrp.georgetown.edu/agingsociety/pubhtml/Insurance/Insurance.htmlMcCall, G. (2004). Facilitators and barriers to changing health behaviors. Retrieved from http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/466708