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The health care industry as of 2010 in the USA contributes or consumes, depending on how you look at it, 17% of the USA GDP. It employs about 15 million people. By 2020 it is projected to consume about 22% of the USA GDP, a staggering figure for JUST one single section of the service sector of the economy. These figures doesn't even include those parts of the economy devoted to health foods, alternative medicines and practices, sporting and fitness centers and so forth which could come into the ambit of general health care, or the percentage of people seeking medical care abroad through medical tourism.
(Wikipedia: "the same McKinsey and Co study estimated that 750,000 American medical tourists traveled from the United States to other countries in 2007", and perhaps if the trend continues 1,000,000 in 2010, and 3,000,000 by 2020)
If we add all this together than possibly, hypothetically the USA could be spending almost 25% of GDP on the health care industry by 2020. This does not sound or feel normal where one nation devotes so much to one industry, when most developed countries consistently devote only 10% of GDP to health care, which in the case of the UK is about 5% government run, and the rest of the 5% in the private sector.
The vast majority of this huge $2.9 trillion industry is privately regulated in the USA, and very naturally if we are seeking out the problems and solutions to this industry one needs to look hard at the private sector foremost to see where the industry is failing the majority of Americans.....soaring costs, amongst the highest in the world; per capita spending which is more than any other nation in the world on health care, but delivering a well below average health care service to the vast majority of Americans.
Whats the crux of the problem?
Its seems that the very fact the USA health care industry is dominated by the private sector whose incentive is primarily to make profits first and delivery of health care second, seeking out the most profitable sections of the industry and ear marking their resources to that sector than obviously Americans who are less financially endowed, the OAP's, the 40 million underclass, the working class, and the 30 million actually under employed or unemployed are going to suffer of course, simply because they are not an appealing market for the private sector up to a certain point.
Additionally since the private health care sector competes with each other on the basis of services and prices; underlying philosophy being, the greater the price the better the service...."You get what you pay for"....then logically this is an open incentive to spiral up prices in the private sector which again puts a burden on the middle classes, never mind the under privileged, which is traditionally considered by global standards to be a relatively prosperous section of society even if one of the spouses were working in the average household.
The simple solution to this runaway madness of Capitalism dominating the entire economy through the provision of health care, which by 2020 could be consuming 25% of the GDP is for the government to step in decisively within the FDR New Deal mode and introduce a simple single payer system of health care which coexists with the private sector, BUT the government sector dominates the entire industry, and essentially for the vast majority of Americans delivers affordable health care when they need it the most.
This is the basic requirement and standard of a civilized society.
The USA is the richest nation on earth, with per capita approaching $50,000. Its government should be able to fork out about 5% of GDP on affordable universal health care provided by the government based on the British model of a health tax contribution from those who are working, with additional top up funds from the central government. That such a government health service works for the needs of the weakest in society, seeking out the cheapest and best generic medicines and ancillary services from the USA, and abroad........The fact that the government sector of the national health service will not be working for profit will suppress the soaring costs of health care for the average American.
The rich and privileged, around whom the private sector really operates can still get their exclusive service as they do in the UK, BUT what you have in the UK is an industry which enmasse does not chase, or pretend to chase the rich clients at the cost of Joe public average.
In that overall sense Obama's well meant health care initiative will fail, because it has at its center the main initiative of including more responsibility and activity of the private sector (insurance companies) and as with the triumph of hope over expectations, such companies will only operate for their personal interests, and thus further add to pushing up prices of medical care in the USA to new unseen records.
Obama cannot and has not addressed the fundamental issue; how to reduce the soaring, unattainable for many, price of health care in the USA to astronomical levels. He hasn't addressed the basic issue of private corporate greed vs basic public needs. That is the job of governments; thats why we have "popular" elections.
