Health Care Reform » Essay Paper

Health policy is one of the major social policies in any nation because its formulation is highly influenced by many social factors that affect the development of social policies. The reform of the American health care sector such that the health services are of high quality, readily available and affordable to all citizens is a public policy issue that has been discussed in the country for a long time. The weight of the discussion has been varying with respect to the changes in the influential politicians and activists (Hilary Clinton, George Bush, Barrack Obama and others) and how much the reforms have been viewed as an issue of public concern. This paper discusses some of the recommendations for the reforms that were made and also how the Obama’s plan fits these recommendations.

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Recommendations

There were some recommendations that were made by health policy exports, health insurance executives, hospital administrators, economists and other groups in America. First, they recommended that the federal and state laws be rationalized to support the coordination of care, facilitate organizational innovation and streamline the administrative and financial functions. This is because the federal and state laws previously provided inconsistencies that acted as barriers to the reform of health care system. For instance, there was inconsistence in the coordination among the service providers. They demanded that the reforms contain the laws that govern the corporate practice of the medicine doctrines and the practice limitations scope (Annals of Internal Medicine).Health Care Reform » Essay Paper

Secondly, they recommended for the development of a health information technology infrastructure having the set national standards to enhance effective exchange of data. They made this recommendfatio0n because a well developed information technology system is important in the collection of data which in turn facilitates quality improvement. To achieve this, they said that the system needed a rapid development and implementation of the national standards to enhance the data management in the health care system (Annals of Internal Medicine).

Lastly, they recommended the establishment of independent agency that is securely funded to sponsor and carry out the evaluation of the researches on the effectiveness of the devices, drugs and other various medical interventions. This is due to the lack of data on the effectiveness of the various processes of care and medical interventions. This independent agency was to analyze the cost effectiveness of the various health care diagnostics, therapeutics and procedures among others. The groups further demanded that the methods used and data be transparent and all the researches be available to the public and various institutions such as the health care providers to facilitate the making of sound health decisions (Annals of Internal Medicine).Health Care Reform » Essay Paper

How the Obama’s plan fits these recommendations

The rising cost of health care is the biggest challenge. For example, the rising of the insurance premiums makes the many people not to access quality health services. To deal with such situation in the United States of America, the Obama’s reform plan seems superior as it will enhance the modernization of the health care sector making all its sectors more efficient.  The doctors in America are paid according to their performance and they focus on the betterment of health care services. Also, the plan gives small firms and individuals a chance of joining the large insurance pools in America. These pools will help prevent the toppling of the system by the view people who incurs high costs for medical services and will help people from being subjected to very costly processes (Culter M, et al).Health Care Reform » Essay Paper