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Health Care in the United States

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Submitted By owalter
Words 3702
Pages 15
Walter Olejarski
Ms. Marshall
SYG 2000-02M
15 March 2012
Healthcare in the United States:
A Flawed Society People in the United States pay too much for the healthcare benefits they receive, and some have a poor quality of life. Advancements in technology and medical science allow people to live longer, but at times living longer has an adverse effect on the elderly. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “all men are created equal,” yet in today’s healthcare system, all citizens are not treated as equal. Moreover, quality healthcare is provided only to those who can afford it. Due to sociocultural differences and socioeconomic changes in the United States, health disparities are at an all-time high. Rising healthcare costs and the under-regulated health insurance industry directly correlate to poor health, and true healers are few and far between. In our society, those who can afford it stay healthy, and the remaining population is forced to live without proper medical care. Many problems exist with regard to healthcare in the US including poverty, crime, ethics, and policy, but the most overwhelming is cost. President Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, called Obama-Care by some, is a start, but our society has a long way to go in bringing affordable healthcare to all Americans. Functionalists would view the healthcare system as if nothing is wrong, calling it a trend in society and finding some rationale to justify their position on the subject. For instance, John Carl explains that “elderly people begin to shed their old social roles and begin to take on new roles in society” (220). Part of the new role is to accept whatever care is available to them until their inevitable death, but they also become mentors with invaluable memories and experience. However, symbolic internationalists propose that people can

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