Research

What do the healthcare systems of the other countries look like compared to the United States? 

 

Norway:

• All citizens and residents have equal access to necessary medical services with very little costs. Norway prioritizes its financial burden on patients which is vital during emergencies and poor health conditions. 

• Norway focuses on preventing further injury by requiring constant screenings, vaccines, and education about how to prevent diseases and illness in order to improve overall public health. 

• Norway’s healthcare is what the government significantly invests in.

  • Granting it high quality technology in order to grant patients great care and safety 

• Overall results from this is higher life expectancy, less child morality, and better child health. 

 

United States:

• Lots of advanced technology

• Grants high quality health care to those who can afford it. Lots of specialists and high tech treatment is available to those who can pay. 

  • USA’s lack of a universal healthcare system gives lots of people without health insurance. Significant amount of Americans lack options with money restrictions, leaving to no access to any sort of care. 

• Medical bills are the highest leading cause to personal debt and bankruptcy. Even those with insurance risk lots of problems with expenses. 

• Unlike other countries, the USA focuses on Treatment of illnesses and diseases instead of preventing them. Lack of education surrounds lots of dangerous illnesses. 

• Spends a significantly more amount of money on military than health care. Life expectancy and infant mortality rates are often much worse.  

 

Graph comparing Norway's life expectancy to USA’s:

 

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Takeaways:

Both having great technology and benefits from their health care provides patients with a comfortable experience. Unfortunately, the United States safeguards these opportunities for a select few with enough money to pay for it. This results in a lower life expectancy and more infant mortality. Norway is an example of a country that gives equal access to healthcare which results in a higher life expectancy and less infant mortality. An equity-based system gives citizens the opportunity to live a longer and more healthy life.

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How the media and public have increased the price of healthcare in America:

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Demand for New Age Treatments:
Public opinion and media coverage of new state-of-the-art technology and treatments, such as liposuction or fix it surgeries, increase demand, leading to higher prices for new equipment and procedures for those who actually need them for life-saving treatment.
Source: New England Journal of Medicine​

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Drug Price Inflation
Media coverage of new, brand-name medicines drives public demand, which leads to inflated drug prices as drug firms capitalize on the new public glare.
Drug prices such as Ozempic and other best-selling drugs have inflated under widespread public glare.
Source: Journal of the American Medical Association. 

Increased Diagnostic Test Use:

Fear created by media coverage 

Cancer scare stories, for example, drive increased demands for expensive diagnostic tests, thus increasing healthcare spending and prices of such tests among those indeed requiring such tests for important medical images.
Source: Health Affairs.

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Drive for Immediate and High-Tech Care:
Media accounts reporting adverse results in health care compel hospitals to offer immediate and high-tech care, driving costs through staffing and operations improvements.
Source: American Economic Review​

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Medical Tourism and Consumer Demand Influence:
Media coverage of high-end healthcare options has enhanced patient expectations of medical experience and hospitals, which has led to higher cost of care supporting the resources to meet such requirements.
Source: The Lancet​.