Preventive Care
Running head: FUNDING PREVENTIVE CARE IN AMERICA
Funding Preventive Care in America
Webster University
December 7, 2011
Funding Preventive Care in America
Preventive care is an element that is becoming important to not only those in the healthcare field but America as a whole. Preventive care helps to not only prevent but in some cases stop from increasing illness such as obesity, hypertension, and heart disease. Many healthcare officials feel that preventative care is important to the health care field while the government does not share their sentiments and thus funds are not distributed equally to areas which assist with preventative care. Many critics feel that if the government would work with funding preventive care programs, the cost of health insurance would decrease and many Americans would be more apt to take a healthier approach to living. Preventive health care is measures taken by an individual to prevent illness or diseases that may or may not arise in the future. The American government does not equally fund preventive health care measures as it does the war. With this being said, many health care officials believe that it is important for individuals to receive preventive care. The whole idea would be to help keep costs down yet there has not been sufficient enough studies that shows that preventive care actually keeps rising health care costs down. Preventive health care measures include services such as screening (ie cancer, cholesterol), vaccines, and other wellness benefits. Currently the government is making adjustments in order to allocate more money into the preventive health care sector and this is partially due to the Health Care Reform Act created by President Obama. However, as good as this sound, this act has been met with much criticism. The government is still quite hesitant to allocate funds for several reasons: the estimated costs of spending is different based upon the type of preventive care that is provided, lack
Funding Preventive Care in America
Webster University
December 7, 2011
Funding Preventive Care in America
Preventive care is an element that is becoming important to not only those in the healthcare field but America as a whole. Preventive care helps to not only prevent but in some cases stop from increasing illness such as obesity, hypertension, and heart disease. Many healthcare officials feel that preventative care is important to the health care field while the government does not share their sentiments and thus funds are not distributed equally to areas which assist with preventative care. Many critics feel that if the government would work with funding preventive care programs, the cost of health insurance would decrease and many Americans would be more apt to take a healthier approach to living. Preventive health care is measures taken by an individual to prevent illness or diseases that may or may not arise in the future. The American government does not equally fund preventive health care measures as it does the war. With this being said, many health care officials believe that it is important for individuals to receive preventive care. The whole idea would be to help keep costs down yet there has not been sufficient enough studies that shows that preventive care actually keeps rising health care costs down. Preventive health care measures include services such as screening (ie cancer, cholesterol), vaccines, and other wellness benefits. Currently the government is making adjustments in order to allocate more money into the preventive health care sector and this is partially due to the Health Care Reform Act created by President Obama. However, as good as this sound, this act has been met with much criticism. The government is still quite hesitant to allocate funds for several reasons: the estimated costs of spending is different based upon the type of preventive care that is provided, lack
References: Aldana, S.G. “Financial Impact of a Comprehensive Multisite Workplace Health Promotion Program,” Preventive Medicine, vol. 40 (2005), pp. 131–137. Finkelstein, E.A. et al (2009). “Annual Medical Spending Attributable to Obesity: Payer- and Service-Specific Estimates,” Health Affairs, Web Exclusive (2009), pp. w822–w831. Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Health Committee. (2009). Social Care. United Kingdom: The Stationary Office HHS Press office. (2011, February 9). Retrieved from http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/02/20110209b.html Masters, K. (2005). Role development in professional nursing practice. Burlington: MA, Jones Bartlett Learning.