Health Disparities Among Underserved in United State

Health Disparities Among Undeserved in the United States
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Health Disparities Among Undeserved in the United States
Health disparity has been an issue of concern among the undeserved in the United States as well as across the world. A high rate of difference in healthcare provision between different population groups has been recorded over the years. This challenge has greatly affected the ability of the larger population to access quality healthcare either due to the increasing cost of healthcare of the unavailability of healthcare resources. Lack of or insufficient access to healthcare among the undeserved and maligned ethnic groups is leading to the worsening of healthcare outcomes. Disparities in healthcare occur across different dimensions which mainly include the difference in ethnic groups, social-economic status, location, age, gender, disability status, and sexual orientation. This paper provides literature work which explains deeply on the current status of healthcare disparities while providing an appropriate approach for control and management of the issue thus enabling equity in healthcare access among all people. Accessing health resources for all is an appropriate social approach that provides guideline toward utilization of the limited available resources for the benefit of all. So, it is crucial that better and more inclusive policies be instituted to help ensure that everyone has access to better healthcare.
Across the world, the goal of improving healthcare outcomes is widely shared. Jordan et al. (2017) note that “the “triple aim” of health care system improvement includes (1) improving the health care experience of patients, (2) improving the health of populations and individuals, and (3) reducing health care costs.” To successfully achieve the first two, the disparity in healthcare has to be dealt with. Additionally, Jordan et al. (2017) continue to note that these goals will only be achieved if “directed initiatives shift reimbursement and incentives from volume to value, recognizing that resources and expenditures are limited.” The above statement simply means that the policies and healthcare initiatives adopted have to focus on the question of quality. Quality means that the world will stop focusing on the numbers and instead build towards systems and mechanisms that will improve the overall health outcomes of all populations.
However, while dealing with healthcare disparities, it is crucial to determine the root cause of the matter. In their article, Woolf and Braveman (2011) talk of the root cause being an issues to do with low income. They agree that low-income individuals find themselves subjected to a lot of issues that could in turn “harm health through complex pathways.” These researchers continue to note that the root causes have to be addressed if healthcare disparity is to be dealt with. Angus Deaton (2016) commented on the different worlds the rich and the poor live in by noting that “it is as if the top income percentiles belong to one world of elite, wealthy US adults, whereas the bottom income percentiles each belong to separate worlds of poverty, each unhappy and unhealthy in its way.” What the above means is that when setting out to achieve healthcare goals, each of these groups has to be approached differently. For the poor, one cannot implement healthcare initiatives without considering the people’s daily concerns like food, shelter, and clothing. The above notion that enhances Woolf, and Braveman’s notion that the root causes have to be weeded out first before the issue of healthcare disparity is dealt with. Woolf and Braveman (2011) continue to offer some wise words as they note that “a shortsighted political focus on reducing spending in these areas could actually increase medical costs by magnifying disease burden and widening health disparities.” The root causes have to trimmed first and then fresh healthcare measures implemented to ensure that healthcare disparities are trimmed as well.
Socioeconomic status is an element that factors in the issue of healthcare disparity quite well. In a country like the U.S., socioeconomic status has a greater relationship to health because the country has a higher economic inequality. In an article from the CNBC by Carmen Reinicke (2018), “the top 1 percent of families took home an average of 26.3 times as much income as the bottom 99 percent in 2015.” What the above means is that the rich are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer and can only fight for the crumbs left behind by the rich. The question of whether socioeconomic status is linked to health is vividly shown by Dave Choksi (2018). He notes that “low-income adults are more than 3 times as likely to have limitations with routine activities (like eating, bathing, and dressing) due to chronic illness, compared with more affluent individuals.” Additionally, it is a known fact that children living in poverty are more prone to diseases like obesity, conditions like heightened blood lead levels, and other future health issues which could easily condemn them to bad health. Wilson (2009) brings about a different perspective as he dwells on the issue of preventable and unpreventable diseases. He notes that reduced levels of socioeconomic status, especially in the U.S., often increases &...