Improving Access to Care in the United States

1. Read the article titled, “Equitable Access to Care — How the United States Ranks internationally”. You may also view the article at http://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJMp1406707. Construct an argument to defend or refute claims suggesting a need to implement universal health coverage in the United States. Provide context or background information that lays the foundation for your argument. Be sure to include single payer versus multi-payer systems in your argument.

2. Use the Internet to assess critical components of the Affordable Care Act, and predict the economic impact of those components on the overall U.S. healthcare system over the next decade. Provide a rationale for your response.

3. Read the Senate Bill HB 707 for the state of Georgia. You may also view the article at http://www.legis.ga.gov/Legislation/20132014/143506.pdf. Next, predict the impact of Senate Bill HB 707 on the expansion of Medicaid in the State of Georgia. Critique the implications of Georgia’s HB 707 on Georgia’s uninsured population. Support your position using a minimum of two (2) sources from the Internet.

4. Identify the positive trends relative to the future of organized delivery systems. Provide one (1) example of an organized delivery system in your area, and examine its impact on reducing costs, increasing access to care, and improving quality of care.

5. Consumer-driven health plans often rely on large deductibles funded via a health savings account framework. Suggest two (2) scenarios that depict the potential effect(s) of a large deductible on price elasticity for health services. Theorize one (1) possible outcome of your proposed scenarios.

each question must be answered with a min. of 200 words