The Concept of Free Healthcare Services - Research Paper Example

Foco economics assessed essays Most if not all of the countries around the globe believes that it is within the obligation of the to providethe basic health services among its constituents. In order to render such services, there should be ample amount of funds in the government's treasury to deal with the high cost of treatment among the sick people. There are a lot of schemes in order to provide the needed amount of funds in order to cater the health needs of the people. In order to make and produce such a funding, most of the government in the world are collecting taxes on wages, tariffs, and other forms of taxes in order to compensate the needs of health care services. However, majority of the economists in the world claim that these basic needs could only be provided for free if the government and its economy is in good shape with its revenues ample to provide funds for auxiliary needs such as the health care services. It is an established fact that one cannot compromise health and that is why it should treat the health sector perhaps with outmost priority. The allotted funds must be accessible and available to everyone in order for them to feel that the state is regarding the health sector among its necessities to stand. In this kind of event, one cannot deny the fact that the health care service could only be accessed for free if the government has seen its importance and has enough money to subsidize the needs of the people who are in need of health care. Foco economics assessed essays 2 In United Kingdom, there are health care services for free but not all of the services are for free. There are some that has minimal payment and there are services with nod discounts or subsidy from the government. It is by determining the kind of health care service that the people would avail is determinant of these schemes. The website of UK National Health Service stated demonstrated this kind of right as "In the UK, health care may be (mostly) free, but it may not be hassle-free. The UK National Health Service (NHS) administers the country's health care services, with funding and support from the Department of Health. Through more than 300 Primary Care Trusts, the NHS operates hospitals, clinics, and other facilities. The NHS provides medical, dental, long-term, and other care through a system of gatekeeper general practitioners (GPs) who refer patients to specialists and more complex treatment as needed. To alleviate the strain of too many patients and too few doctors, the NHS offers telemedicine services (NHS Direct) and walk-in centers staffed by nurses who can provide basic medical care." In order to avail the free services, there are a lot of tasks to be done in order to avail the free services. The health care government further emphasized that the healthcare needs of those who are availing it must be established in order to prevent abuses and misuse of this privileges as the funds that maintain this kind of services are derived from the revenues from the government and therefore, not a single centavo must be wasted for the misuse or abuse by some people. Foco economics assessed essays 3 However, there are a lot of loopholes and concerns that the government must address in order for the people to fully avail the healthcare services among the people. It was stated in the earlier part of this paper that it is important to establish the need for health care services in order to avail the said services. In this case, it would be very difficult for the people to avail this kind of service plus the fact that it would be very impossible for them to have instant access especially that person who needs immediate concern regarding health care. In relation to this, the UK government presented " Reforms have included (amongst other actions) the laying down of detailed service standards, strict financial budgeting, revised job specifications, reintroduction of "fundholding" (under the description "practice-based commissioning"), closure of surplus facilities and emphasis on rigorous clinical and corporate governance. In addition medical training has been restructured. Some new services have been developed to help manage demand, including NHS Direct. A new emphasis has been given to staff reforms, with the Agenda for Change agreement providing harmonised pay and career progression. These changes have, however, given rise to controversy within the medical professions, the media and the public. During 2005 and 2006 hospitals began to lay off staff as a consequence of these reforms and the financial stringency accompanying them, further adding to controversy. (Wikipedia 2006)" In relation to the funding of this kind of services, the budget of healthcare services may vary based on the budget that is allotted by the government for the consumption of the people. Still, economic matters are a factor to determine the usefulness of this kind of service. Foco economics assessed essays 4 There is also an avenue for second thought on why such services could be subdivided into a lot of categories which leads to classification of different services to be classified as free or paid in nature. Also, it would be impossible to maintain a 100 percent free health care services since industries concerning health care would be affected in case this kind of idea prospers. It could be attributed that health care services is one of the most productive industry in the country. In fact the industry is in demand of numerous amounts of workers due to a number of employment possibilities- In fact, the country is sourcing foreign workers to fill in the vacancies of the said industry. Simple logic dictates, if everything is free, it is impossible to sell anything. To add to that, health care industry perhaps is one of the fastest growing industries in the world and won't become obsolete because health care is constant in the life of man throughout every generations. Consuming over 10 percent of gross domestic product of most developed nations, health care can form an enormous part of a country's economy. In 2003, health care costs paid to hospitals, physicians, nursing homes, diagnostic laboratories, pharmacies, medical device manufacturers and other components of the health care system, consumed 15.3 percent of the GDP of the United States (WHO 2006), the largest of any country in the world. In 2001, for the OECD countries the average was 8.4 percent with the United States (13.9%), Switzerland (10.9%), and Germany (10.7%) being the top three. In recent years, UK joined these countries due to the noted success and profit in venturing into this kind of business. Foco economics assessed essays 5 To further deal with the needs of healthcare, it is mandatory for UK industries and company to cover the health care services of its workers, rank and file and personnel. This kind of provision is often regarded as benefit. This kind of provision is made in order to protect and assure the working force of their compensation, benefits and insurance should an untoward incident occur particularly in health care matters. To add to that, it is compulsory for the working and earning class to give their taxes to ensure funds to further maintain such a service in the government. However, there are still discrepancies that are being experienced by UK workers. The website uky.edu (2006) stated that "Each year U.K. faculty and staff invest both directly and indirectly a substantial amount of money for health insurance. U.K. employees typically make annual direct payments, with after tax dollars, of two to three thousand dollars, and sometimes more, for the health insurance coverage of family members. In addition, as part of our compensation package, U.K. employees annually pay approximately $1,700 a year with pre-tax dollars for our own health insurance coverage" If we are to analyze the concept of free healthcare services is somewhat paid due to the fact that high amount of taxes has been imposed to the people which is somewhat a form of indirect payment from the people channeled through government projects and segmented into health care service. Foco economics assessed essays 6 To add to the claim, the UK workers in US are experiencing the same fate. "In November 1997 the U.K. Chapter of the American Association of University Professors surveyed the Lexington and Medical Center campus faculties to obtain a more precise understanding of experience with, problems encountered, and assessment of the University's current health insurance program. The survey relied on a single mailing to faculty, by campus mail, using a one page questionnaire. Completed questionnaires were promptly returned by 270 faculty members (University of Kentucky 2006).Limited resources precluded starting with a pilot survey or making follow-up mailings or calls. While in hind sight it is apparent that some of the questions could have been asked in a manner that would have produced more precise data, the results of the survey reveal a number of significant strengths and weaknesses of the current program and provide a concrete basis for recommending changes so that the faculty and staff will be better served by our health insurance investment." To wrap this up, the health care provision, privilege and benefits with regards to its usefulness and utilization boils down to one thing- the economic situation of the country. If we are to analyze, the health care provisions in this country is somewhat adjusting to the trend on what the economy dictates rather than the other way around. Of course, there are a lot of considerations to be looked upon but the thing is, the economy is the primary reason on why some health acre services seem to be distant or rarely felt by the people. To correct this kind of malady, the government must enact and regulate laws that would make health care services accessible to the people who need it. After all, health is one of the issues that should not be compromised. Reference: 1) UK National Health Services (2006). Overview. Opened March 3, 2007. URL available http://www.hoovers.com/uk-national-health-service/--ID__102679--/free-co-factsheet.xhtmlcm_ven=PAID&cm_cat=INK&cm_pla=CO1&cm_ite=uk-national-health-service 2) Wikipedia (2006). National Health Service, Blair Government. Opened March 3, 2007. URL available http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Health_Service 3) World Heath Organization Report. (2000). Why do health systems matter. 4) uky.edu (2006) REPORT ON DEFICIENCIES IN U.K.'s EMPLOYEE HEALTH CARE INSURANCE Read More