Manpower and Demographics

Manpower and Demographics

MHM506 – Health Systems Administration

Module 1 - Case

The United States of America present healthcare system is unsustainable as it continues to consume a growing share of our gross domestic product. Healthcare reform has been a topic of discussion in Washington, D. C. since the days of almshouses but no legislative action was really taken. In 1965, Medicare and Medicaid became law to assist the aged and poor. The Clinton Administration proposed their failed healthcare reform package in 1993 and healthcare is still a controversial subject today under the Obama administration.

In The Road to Reform, Dr. Lavizzo-Mourey described 6 points as Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Blueprint for Change. The 6 points are: Cover the uninsured, Improve the quality, value and equality of health care, Bring down spending, Prevent disease and promote healthier lifestyles, Strengthen public health’s capacity to protect our health and Address the social determinants of health” (Lavizzo-Mourey, 2008).

The governor of Maine, Governor Baldacci, created the Governor’s Office of Health Policy and Finance and directed a team to develop and implement a plan to provide all residents in his state access to quality and affordable health care leading to the signing of the Dirigo Health Reform on June 18, 2003. “The comprehensive Dirigo Health Reform initiative addresses the triple threat of rising cost, inconsistent quality, and increasingly unaffordable health coverage to ensure all Mainers are healthy and have coverage” (State of Maine - Office of the Governor - Executive Branch, 2008).

The uninsured populations typically comprise of low income or poor Americans and the near-poor population. Surprisingly, a large percentage of the uninsured are working nuclear families or have at least one full-time worker with a part-time worker in the household. Even though families have income, the high cost of insurance makes private coverage unattainable...