One of the most developed countries, with the largest national economy; yet, it seems to fail at addressing one of society’s largest concerns: affordable healthcare. USA, home to over three-hundred million residents, where about one in three (32%) are saddled with medical debt. An uncontrollable circumstance seems to be the largest financial burden on families, a burden that is carried to their grave.
According to a Yale University School of Public Health study on the many lives that could have been saved during the pandemic with universal health care, Jenny Blair writes, “If the U.S. had a single-payer universal health care system in 2020, nearly 212,000 American lives would have been saved that year….” Creating a more accessible system can enhance how America provides needed services to citizens in a distressing season, strengthening the nation’s survival.
A notorious disease that creeps up on the lives of many, silently spreading, is cancer. Along with the staggering 5,500 cancer diagnoses in the U.S. per day, treatment is necessary to receive the care needed to recover. However, what happens when over 80% of patients are financially struggling?
“The hospital turned me away when I showed up for my surgery. They said I had an old outstanding bill for $800,” Melissa Taylor, a breast cancer fighter, told the American Cancer Society after receiving a diagnosis in 2015. Taylor’s status as a Florida resident, being one of only ten states not to expand Medicaid services, prompted extreme worry. If Taylor’s mother had not provided her with money to borrow that day, her chance of survival would have been unpredictable.
Let’s take a look at one of the countries with the highest survival rate for cancer: South Korea. Their mortality rate is shockingly low, around 75.3 per 100,000 people for cancer. The report by the World Cancer Research Fund shows that South Korea’s National Health Insurance covers the majority of their treatment, most citizens fully covered, with some paying a small co-payment of 5%, a significant difference from the overbearing costs in the USA, typically over $20,000.
Some might argue that universal healthcare would create higher costs for our government and taxpayers, tanking our economy. However, research suggests it would simultaneously save costs and lives. A study by Yale epidemiologists found that “Medicare for All would save around 68,000 lives a year while reducing U.S. health care spending by around 13%, or $450 billion a year.”
The choice is clear: universal healthcare can be the solution to ensure our country successfully supports itself and its citizens. Other nations were able to prove its efficiency. It is time for healthcare to be a right—not a privilege.
