Introduction

Saying that COVID-19 has been devastating to nations and their citizens seems to be an understatement. The impact that the virus has had on the wellbeing, livelihoods, as well as lives of people not only in the U.S. but across the world is massive. More than 6 million people have so far lost their lives to COVID-19 across the world. In the United States alone, the death toll from the virus is estimated to be more than 900,000 people. It would be prudent to note that in the midst of all this, the pandemic has uncovered some basic truths about our healthcare system as well as services. This is more so the case in relation to the need to ensure that all citizens have access to the relevant healthcare services if, and when, they need them regardless of their financial position or capabilities. This text assesses the need for universal healthcare implementation in the United States. The said assessment will be anchored upon the lessons we have learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on populations.

Discussion

The Need for Implementation of Universal Healthcare

From the onset, it should be noted that there exists no standard definition for universal healthcare. Thus, there are a wide range of definitions that have been floated by various authors and organizations in the past in an attempt to explain the nature and conduct of universal healthcare. According to the World Health Organization - WHO (2021), universal health coverage means that all people have access to the health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship. This is the meaning that will be assigned to universal healthcare in the context of this discussion. It should also be noted that as WHO (2021) further indicates, for health coverage to be deemed universal, it should be inclusive of all the health services considered essential. These could be inclusive of, but they are not limited to; the promotion of health and disease prevention, treatment, palliative case, as well as rehabilitation.

To a large extent, the US healthcare system was caught flatfooted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is more so the case given that as Graves, Baig, and Butin (2021) indicate, the disease came at a time whereby a significant portion of the US population, approximately 29 million people, remained uninsured. This effectively meant that millions of people specifically those on the lower end of the income bracket could not be able to access quality, quick, and meaningful interventions when the pandemic hit, specifically with regard to testing and treatment.

In as far as testing is concerned, there is need to indicate that the pandemic exposed the need to ensure that rapid diagnostic options are available to all citizens of this great nation regardless of ability to pay. According to Gaffney, Woolhandler, and Himmelstein (2022), those who do not have insurance may not have access to timely COVID-19 testing. This is an assertion further advanced by the Health Resources and Services Administration HRSA (2022) which is categorical that although measures had been put in place over the last couple of months to ensure that uninsured persons were able to access free coronavirus tests, this may no longer be the case going forward. This, according to HRSA (2022), is more so the case given that the program under which healthcare facilities have been seeking reimbursement for the testing and treatment of patients who are not insured has run out of funds. This particular program, christened the HRSA COVID-19 Uninsured Program and Coverage Assistance Fund, has been instrumental in efforts to rein in COVID-related mortality. Prior to the introduction of the program, uninsured persons had to pay out of pocket for COVID-19 testing. In the words of Gaffney, Woolhandler, and Himmelstein (2022), in 2020, uninsured adults (including many with chronic diseases) were less likely than the insured to have been tested for COVID-19 despite having higher rates of positive test results (1345). It is important to note that various studies have in the past indicated that there is a relationship between early testing and diagnosis and better treatment outcomes, as well as future complications associated with the disease (Gaffney, Woolhandler, and Himmelstein, 2022). This is to say that the earlier persons are...

…Tevares (2014), for the US to be able to afford universal healthcare, there would be need for serious planning and prudent management of the resources that the government has at its disposal. For instance, according to the author, by taking power away from private insurances and pharmaceutical companies, the tax breaks they formerly had could contribute to the funds (Tevares, 2014, p. 211). Other sources of funds for the government in efforts to implement universal healthcare are inclusive of slight increase in taxes. This has been successfully undertaken in Canada.

Yet another obstacle to the successful implementation of universal healthcare in the US is healthcare system fragmentation. There is no doubt at all that our healthcare system is hugely fragmented. This effectively means that there is little coordination and stakeholders are yet to embrace any meaningful and/or sustainable synergy. Further, governance systems and functions as well as organizations and the relevant players lack coordination and may in some instances appear to be in competition. In the words of Ikegami (2014), fragmentation may undermine progress towards UHC as health system quality and efficiency can be compromised through multiple providers, diffuse governance arrangements, poor budgetary planning, misalignment of incentives, and duplication and mistargeting of services (79). One approach of rein in this concern is through directed efforts to improve care coordination. Further, existing incentives misalignment ought to be eliminated.

Conclusion

In the final analysis, it would be prudent to note that owing to the interconnectedness of our global community, we need to be even better prepared to handle future pandemics. With the world of today having become a global village, an infectious disease takes much less time to spread. Future pandemics might be even worse than the present pandemic. Towards this end, there is need to not only ensure that the nations healthcare system is not only capable of handling widespread illnesses, but is also capable of addressing the healthcare needs of populations regardless of their socioeconomic status. This would help promote the health and wellbeing of citizens and reduce strain on healthcare systems. Thus, there exists sufficient basis for the implementation of universal healthcare coverage. However, to further…