Comparative analysis of three different health systems

Comparative analysis of three different health systems
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Introduction
The health care system concerns the institutions, services offered and institutional arrangements for treating and caring for the ill, as well as promoting health (Palmer & Short, 2010). Political, social, economic, technological as well as legal factors influence the health care systems of countries making them distinct and these factors influence how health policies are created. For instance, the Australian healthcare system has its unique features, but because of a strong British influence, it shares some similarities with the U.K. On the other hand, adoption of voluntary insurance systems was heavily influenced by the American system since 1953. Similarly, the use of tax funded health insurance arrangement is based on the Canadian Model adopted in 1975 under the Medibank scheme (Palmer & Short, 2010). On the political front, reformist organizations and the political structure determines policies adopted as with more partisan politics it is harder to achieve consensus because of ideological differences (Hussain & Rivers, 2010). This is a comparative analysis of the Australian, American and Canadian healthcare systems
Design and functioning of Australian healthcare system
Role of government
In the Australian context, the government plays a prominent role in the health sector especially though funding and making policies but there is less emphasis on provision of health services. Medicare is also covered by the government with the federal government offering funds and overseeing the national health insurance scheme as well as other health related benefits and health programs within territories (Maynard, 2005). At the same time the government plays a prominent role in regulating health services even in the private sector, and supervises subsidised services in the regions. Since 2011, the federal government has continued to play amore prominent role in healthcare provision through primary care and funding of public hospitals.
Federalism influences the financial arrangement and arrangements of healthcare organisations. There are two territories and six states under the Australian central government commonly referred as the federal, Commonwealth or Australian government, and there are over 800 local governments throughout Australia (Palmer & Short, 2010). The local governments have limited powers through restrictions imposed by the constitution, but roles may change depending on policies of the government in power. The Commonwealth government typically funds most projects and health arrangements, while states mainly direct service provisions.
The Canadian model is similar to the Australian healthcare system whereby the regionally administered public healthcare is a universal insurance coverage for public funded hospitals. Nonetheless, Canadian provinces and territories have responsibilitie...