Market Focus: Healthcare in the United States

Market Focus: Healthcare in the United States
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Market Focus: Healthcare in the United States
In 2020, the United States (U.S) annual health expenditure was 4 trillion dollars, with the personal medical care expenditure at $10,202 for every resident (Statista Research Department, 2022). This implies that the U.S is the leading economy globally in terms of health care expenditure. Accordingly, state and federal government budgets have been increasingly stretched by the Covid-19 pandemic, further exacerbating the country’s health care cost. Many residents faced job cuts and illnesses, causing them to lose their employment-based medical insurance plans. More people are increasingly becoming eligible for Medicaid as their incomes deteriorate, which mirrors rising Medicaid enrollment (Statista Research Department, 2022).
The current basic system of the U.S health care sector includes a unique hybrid, multiple-payer structure coupled with single-payer elements (e.g., Medicare, although some program categories require beneficiaries to contribute premiums), socialized medicine (e.g., Department of Veteran Affairs), self-pay (e.g., out-of-pocket expenses), and publicly subsidized private payers (e.g., employment sponsorship medical insurance) (Donnelly et al., 2019). In 2019, America’s healthcare spent approximately $11,100 for every resident on medical care, which constitutes the highest medical care cost among the wealthy nations (Peter G. Peterson Foundation, 2020). Despite the significant healthcare expenditures, the U.S. health outcomes are relatively poor compared to peer nations. America’s medical outcomes perform worse in terms of life expectancy, unmanaged diabetes, and infant mortality (Peter G. Peterson Foundation, 2020).
As medical care costs continue to rise, healthcare consumers are finding avenues to save money by reducing spending. However, the current healthcare landscape presents unique challenges that prevent consumers from becoming truly empowered and informed: (a) lack of price transparency, (b) fracture information, and (c) overwhelming benefit navigation. Regarding fracture information, it is increasingly challenging for patients to access their complete medical data, thus contributing to deteriorating care outcomes. The consumer also finds it difficult to obtain trustworthy information concerning quality, costs, and satisfaction thresholds for the healthcare services rendered. Lastly, patients find it challenging to comprehend and utilize novel benefits arrangements effectively (South, 2018). Therefore, users find it difficult to manage their ...