Indeed, the problem of vulnerable populations in health care is in the U.S., despite the evolved health care system. I understand that both the federal and state government in the U.S. have put much effort into improving access to health care services. However, I think these efforts are still lagging because of the high rate of discrimination in the U.S. Weinstein, and his colleagues (2019) showed that over 37.9% of the U.S. population are classified as racial and ethnic minorities. This figure shows that a significant population in the U.S. are still struggling to access health care because of race and ethnicities. Moreover, the cost of health care in the country is high, and the system lacks universal health care policies that would relieve racial and ethnic minorities (Knickman & Elbel, 2019). I believe that race and ethnicities are the primary cause of discrimination in the U.S. because their economic opportunities are limited. I am confident that this vulnerable population would be handled if the U.S. adopted single-payer or universal healthcare (Weisbert, 2012). These policies ensure that health care is accessible to everyone, even to people with economic challenges.
References
Knickman, R. J. & Elbel, B. (Eds). (2019). Healthcare Delivery in the United States, 12th Edition. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Weinstein, C. L., Cunningham, A., Landistratis, G. & Sivero, A. (2019). Retention of patients with multiple vulnerabilities in a federally qualified health center Buprenorphine Program: Pennsylvania, 2017-2018. American Public Health Association. Retention of Patients With Multiple Vulnerabilities in a Federally Qualified Health Center Buprenorphine Program: Pennsylvania, 2017–2018
Weisbart, E. (2012). A single-payer system would reduce U.S. healthcare costs. AMA Journal of Ethics, 14(11). 897-903.
