Preview

Austrian Healthcare System

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
705 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Austrian Healthcare System
AUSTRIA
Part One Austria is a central European country where the healthcare system is very well developed. This coverage allows the life expectancy, according to the Encyclopedia of Global Health, to be 79.09 years (Purdy, 2008). Infant mortality, a rate of a child dying before reaching the age of one is reported by the Encyclopedia of Global Health at 4.6 deaths per 1000 live births (Purdy, 2008) and the World Health Organization reports a similar piece of data, 4 deaths per 1000 deaths in 2009 (W.H.O., 2009). The Journal of the American Medical Association, on the other hand, describes the health status of Austria in regards to infant mortality at 8.1 per 1000 live births, a rate that has been steadily decreasing since World War II (Bennett, Schwarz, Marberger, 1993). This discrepancy among figures poses several questions and further inquiry.
Part Two Austria has one of the world's most highly developed and inclusive social welfare programs (Griffin and Shurgin, 2001). Social security is a main contributor to the health care system (Purdy, 2008). The health care in Austria is a national private and public health care system that provides good access to care and is based on a law that mandates health care as being a legal right to all (Bennett, Schwarz, Marberger, 1993). Austria reports having 99 percent of the inhabitants covered by some kind of health insurance plan, which are funded by workers, employers and the federal, provincial and local government. Also, all those covered by health care are entitled to free outpatient and inpatient treatments (Griffin and Shurgin, 2001). The difference between the public and private health care services offered in Austria includes the access for patients to choose hospitals with more amenities than those covered by the national health system. The laws, though, make a guarantee that the medical care must be of equivalence between the two systems (Bennett, Schwarz, Marberger, 1993).
Analytic Summary I personally



References: CITED BENNETT, CHARLES L., BERNHARD SCHWARZ, and MICHAEL MARBERGER. “Health Care in Austria: Universal Access, National Health Insurance, and Private Health Care”. The Journal of the American Medical Association. JAMA. 1993;269(21):2789-2794. doi: 10.1001/jama.1993.03500210089039. Web. 22 Sep. 2011. http://jama.ama-assn.org.proxy1.cl.msu.edu.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/content/269/21/2789.refs GRIFFIN, ROBERT H., and ANN H. SHURGIN. "Austria." Countries and Their Cultures. Ed. Carol R. Ember and Melvin Ember. Vol. 1. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2001. 127-139. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 22 Sep. 2011. http://go.galegroup.com.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/ps/i.do?&id=GALE%7CCX3401700023&v=2.1&u=msu_main&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w PURDY, ELIZABETH R.. "Austria." Encyclopedia of Global Health. 2008. SAGE Publications. 22 Sep. 2011. http://sage-ereference.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu/view/globalhealth/n131.xml?rskey=XfUw8c&result=1&q=austria WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION. “Global Health Observatory Data Report.” Austria. Table: Country Statistics. 2009. World Health Organization. Web. 22 Sep. 2011. http://apps.who.int/ghodata/?vid=3800&theme=country

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Healthcare Fraud and Abuse

    • 3859 Words
    • 16 Pages

    "World Health Organization Assesses the World 's Health System." WHO. World Health Organization, n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2011.…

    • 3859 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In America, we not only have the problem of the non-insured but the under insured which causes just about as much problem as the underinsured. Each group has contributed to the vast growing cost of healthcare. Over the last decade or two, the amount of uninsured has risen due to the job market in the economy and the fact that most insurances are tied to employment, which is also a problem as the unemployment rate rises. The purpose of this paper is to explore this issue.…

    • 4410 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sick Around the World

    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages

    If your latest battle with your health insurance has you pounding your head with frustration, “Sick Around the World” on PBS may spur you to more drastic action, like leaving the United States altogether. In this “Frontline”, the Washington Post reporter T. R. Reid travels to five countries Britain, Japan, Germany, Taiwan, and Switzerland that manage to provide some form of universal health coverage to their populations. In each nation, he reports, insurance premiums are significantly lower than those in America (in Britain there are none), and the waiting time to see a doctor is either tolerable (in Britain) or nonexistent.…

    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    WHO European Region: Copenhagen World Health Organization, 1999. (1999). Health21: the health for all policy framework for the WHO European Region. Retrieved from http://www.euro.who.int/_data/assest/pdf_file/0010/98398/was540ga199heeng.pdf…

    • 1419 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The United States struggles with the high cost of health care and having the ability to continue to provide basic coverage through Medicare and Medicaid. The German plan has created health insurance for its entire citizen with a surplus of over 5 billion dollars (Miriam Widman, 2011). The plan is cost effective for the German system. The United States is trying to explain how they will pay for the health care plan they have and the part they want to add. The problem starts with almost 45 million uninsured Americans (Arthur Garson Jr, MD, MPH, 2012). The health system in place for the German system has…

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The United States has a unique system of health care delivery. It is unlike any other health care system in the world. Most developed countries have national health insurance programs run by the government and financed through general taxes. Almost all citizens in such countries are entitle to receive health care services. Such is not the case in the United States, where not all Americans are automatically covered by health insurance. (Shi & Singh, 2008)…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Germany has a universal health care plan that can cover everyone with the option of opting out and selecting a private company for health care services. The insurance’s premiums are based on an individual income.…

    • 897 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Healthcare procedures and benefits are both the same and polar opposites. Healthcare procedures and benefits for the public vary. In France, you get a pre-paid insurance card with a set amount of money, which will be deducted by your employer, on top of the tax deductions. On the other hand, if you cannot pay for your insurance and/or live off of the leftover amount of money from the deductions, the government will pay for your insurance in a rather stingy way. This works as a type of “incentive” to…

    • 388 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Everyone would agree that a good health system, above all, must contribute to good health. It is certainly not considered acceptable to protect or improve the average health of the population, if at the same time inequality worsens or remains high because the gain accrues disproportionately to those already enjoying better health. The responsibility of a health care system is also to reduce inequalities to race, gender, social status and religion. While the United States is considered a world leader in almost any category they are judged; however, the US healthcare system remains one of the worst. This analysis will compare the US health system with that of the French. Their health system is worth comparing because they are considered a world leader when it comes to their healthcare system.…

    • 1318 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Policy Process, Part 1

    • 1429 Words
    • 6 Pages

    It is important to understand the policy-making process especially for advocates who plan what type of input is needed in order to have an impact on the final policy. There are a few interesting factors between health policy and social policy. The Social policy deals more with the distribution and maintenance of economic solvency, as well as the provision of services such as housing and transport to specific target groups such as the poor. While in health policy the focus is more on in meeting the health needs of a specific population. In the same manner health insurance policies perhaps were designed to transport to the same target groups as those designed by the social welfare sector. When advocating for a specific policy is important to have in mind that there will be existing policies and competing legislation priorities as well as conflicting positions on the subject that may create barriers. These different aspects are important to assess before proposing any kind of policy. Advocates that are key players and that can bring good criteria to the table are individuals that have been devoted to their profession. These individuals or advocates are more likely to be nurses, clinicians and administrators. Before any subject in healthcare is considered it has to go through an intense process. The focus of my paper will be based on the first three phases of how the process works with Medicare.…

    • 1429 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Economics Outline

    • 940 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Providing health care service for uninsured and underinsured individuals in the United States is an ongoing concern. A report released by the U.S. Census Bureau reveals the number of uninsured Americans under age 65 rose from 45.7 million in 2008 to 50.0 million in 2009 and an estimated 25 million American’s were reported to be underinsured in 2007 (Gould, 2010). Uninsured are individuals not covered by any type of health insurance. Underinsured are individuals who have health coverage that does not adequately protect them from additional costs of care. From an economic perspective, the weight of this concern falls heavily on the leaders and citizens of the nation.…

    • 940 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Socialized medicine was first introduced in Germany by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck in 1883 but was only intended for factory and mine workers. It was mandatory for these workers to get public health insurance. The policy was later extended to almost all employees in Germany by 1911. Today, almost all developed countries have socialized medicine to a high percentage. New Zealand was the first country with mixed economy to have free public health care in 1939. The United States started the first public aid program as Medicaid in the 1960’s to help poor mothers with health care which covered their children. Socialized medicine in some countries like Canada is mandatory for all workers, while in some other countries is salary dependent like in the Netherlands where employees with a certain level of income are excluded.…

    • 1189 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The central issue of politics in our current generation is no longer about getting ahead; instead it is about simply getting by. In recent years major faults have been exposed in the structure of the American health care system. The debate about health care in the U.S focuses on whether there is a fundamental right each individual has to health care. Is there a moral obligation to help individuals by making health care a universal system in the United States? Many Americans believe health care should be looked at as a condition not a commodity. The American people are becoming uneasy with the current system as prices continue to rise in a down economy. The United States needs health care reform through radical revisions of the current system to provide better care for individuals in the future.…

    • 2078 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    As a country we are facing currently facing a problem based on health care. Every country has their own way of doing things, but which way makes the most sense? Statistics show that Canada’s health care system is working for them, but will it work for the United States? Ezekial J. Emanuel, Holly Dressel, and together, Karen Davis, Cathy Shoen, Katharine Shea, and Kristine Haran, all address possible solutions to this problem. While Emanuel feels that America’s system is sufficient, Dressel, Davis, Shoen, Shea, and Haran believe there are better options. These authors evaluate the different systems based on quality, cost, and accessibility.…

    • 793 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are many different healthcare systems used throughout the world. Some differences in Austria’s healthcare and the United States healthcare are listed below.…

    • 553 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays