The debate over health care reform in the United States centers on questions about whether there is a fundamental right to health care, on who should have access to health care and under what circumstances, on the quality achieved for the high sums spent, the sustainability of expenditures that have been rising faster than the level of general inflation and the growth in the economy, the role of the federal government in bringing about such change, and concerns over unfunded liabilities. In 62 percent of all personal bankruptcy in the United States, medical debt is cited as a factor, the biggest single factor of all.[1][2] This is almost unknown in other countries in the developed world.[3] The United States spends a greater portion of total yearly income in the nation on health care than any United Nations member state except for East Timor (Timor-Leste),[4] although the actual use of health care services in the U.S., by most measures of health services use, is below the median among the world's developed countries.[5]
According to the Institute of Medicine of the United States National Academies, the United States is the "only wealthy, industrialized nation that does not ensure that all citizens have coverage".[6] Americans are divided along party lines in their views regarding the role of government in the health economy and especially whether a new public health plan should be created and administered by the federal government.[7] Those in favor of universal health care argue that the large number of uninsured Americans creates direct and hidden costs shared by all, and that extending coverage to all would lower costs and improve quality.[8] Opponents of laws requiring people to have health insurance argue that this impinges on their personal freedom and that other ways to reduce health care costs should be considered.[9] Both sides of the political spectrum have also looked to more philosophical arguments, debating whether people have a fundamental right to have health care which needs to be protected by their government.[10][11]
Recent reform efforts under the Democratic-controlled 111th Congress and President Barack Obama have focused on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (known as the "Senate bill"), which was passed by the Senate in December 2009. The Senate bill went on to serve as the framework for the health component of the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010. This bill and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed the House of Representatives on March 21, 2010 by a vote of 219–212.[12]No Republicans supported the bill.
Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_reform_in_the_United_States
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