US Healthcare System Versus Germany Healthcare System

Introduction
The healthcare system is an important aspect in a country. Proper healthcare system promotes welfare and wellbeing of the population in a country. German healthcare system is managed by the government, which is highly decentralized. The state government is charged with the responsibility of passing healthcare policy and jurisdiction legislation. The state government is responsible for planning and administering state hospitals, and monitoring the physician associations and sickness fund (Blümel & Busse, 2015). The US healthcare system is unique and is described as a hybrid system. This is because the US healthcare system does not have a universal health care coverage, and the health system is not unified. The US healthcare system is largely privatized. Most health care services in the US are delivered privately even though it is financed by public organizations (Shi & Singh, 2015).
This paper seeks to study the comparison between the US healthcare system and Germany healthcare system highlighting their advantages and disadvantages.
Comparison of the US Healthcare System vs. German Healthcare System
The US health care system provides high-quality services to the American populations with effective insurance. The US health care system focuses on conducting clinical research to provide evidence-based healthcare services. Evidence-based scientific care enables physicians to provide patients with quality health services that fulfill their needs through the use of the best scientific knowledge. The US government has invested in clinical research to ensure provision of quality care to the US population. Additionally, the US health care system consists of highly trained physicians who provide quality medical services to patients. Moreover, the US healthcare system has a health care quality assurance that focuses on improving the quality of care. It achieves this through conducting assessments on the delivery of care, identification of issues in the delivery of care, developing strategies to overcome the problems and monitoring the implemented strategies to ensure effectiveness of health care system (Burwell, 2015).
Germany also offers advanced health care like the US health care system. German healthcare system focuses on providing high-quality services to its population. It has an integrated system including an efficient negotiation system, an excellent decision-making process and a decentralized power. It involves all levels of government including the federal, state and local governments in decision making process to promote delivery of high-quality services. The system combines decentralized power and decision-making process with an effective negotiating system that takes place at federal, state, and local levels (Porter & Guth, 2012).
The US government has equipped the health care system with sophisticated technologies that have contributed to effective treatment of several diseases among the American populations. The introduction of sophisticated healthcare technologies has enabled the American population to receive high-tech diagnosis and treatment (Burwell, 2015). On the other hand, German needs to update its hospitals and equipments to promote high-quality care to patients. Some diseases require use of high-tech equipments for diagnosis and treatment. Additionally, the health care professionals need to be provided with technological knowhow to improve their ability to effectively operate the advanced healthcare equipments (Porter & Guth, 2012).
`           The US health care system is equipped with adequate number of physicians and specialists who are able attend to the large American population. This promotes improved health care delivery in hospitals. Although the US healthcare system consists of adequate physicians per capita, they are not distributed evenly in terms of specialty and geography. Low income areas consist of few physicians who cannot adequately serve the huge population in these region leading to poor health conditions among these population (Shi & Singh, 2015). German health care system employs fewer physicians thus hampering the effectiveness in the delivery of adequate services to the large population in the region. Employment of fewer physicians in hospitals is contributed by the complexity in the administration of the health care system. Furthermore, German needs to develop more nursing homes because the chronically disabled patients are currently receiving care in hospitals, which might lead to congestion in future (Porter & Guth, 2012).
German health care has a universal insurance coverage that has allowed every individual in German to have access to quality medical services. Everyone has the opportunity to receive medical care without considering their ability to pay for the medical bills, their employment and income level. The universal coverage has generated various benefits for the German population. Some of these benefits include: it provides young mothers with grants, dental care drugs, and convalescent therapy (Giaimo, 2016). On the other hand, the US lacks a unified system on health insurance coverage. The US issues health insurance coverage basing on various factors such as employment and costs savings. Therefore, the disparities in health insurance coverage and rising premiums have denied millions of American population to acquire health insurance coverage. Studies indicate that 15% of the American population are not insured and lack health coverage. This hinders the population without health insurance coverage to access quality medical services (Schoen, Osborn, Squires & Doty, 2013).
The US healthcare system is expensive thereby disadvantages millions of ordinary Americans to access quality health care services. It records the country with the highest costs of health care per person. In order to cover for the high health expenditures, most hospitals in the US charge more costs on smaller payers (Shi & Singh, 2014). German health care system has ensured containment of costs through provision of sickness funds and financial contributions from medical associations. Patients care is paid through the taxing the employees and employers payroll. The healthcare costs are distributed equally across all ages including the young and the elderly population as well as the ill population in the society. Through this, the German health system is able to effectively manage health care expenditures and focus on maximizing clinical freedom where patients have the freedom to choose the physicians of their choice (Blümel & Busse, 2015).
The US health care system provides Medicaid coverage to the economically disadvantaged group. The economically disadvantaged groups include the blind, elderly and the disabled members in society with low income. Medicaid coverage is funded by both the state and the federal governments. Additionally, the Medicaid coverage funds the nursing home stay. German health care system provides sickness funds to hospitals to reduce hospital costs (Shi & Singh, 2015). The sickness funds facilitate effectiveness in hospital care, contribute to provision of a broad range of preventive services in hospitals and promote home nursing care. The sickness funds as well finances the disable individuals in German to promote their well being. The sickness funds has also facilitated the healthcare system to carry out a wide rage procedures thus enhancing the well being of the patient population in German (Giaimo, 2016).
The US health care system is well coordinated thereby promoting safe and timely delivery of quality care. Timely delivery of services promotes efficiency in health care system. Excellent coordination has also enhanced smooth running of the health care process such as preventable re-admissions. This contributes to achievement of the goals of the health care system (Shi & Singh, 2015). German experiences the challenge of well coordination in certain departments of its health care system. There lacks coordination between the hospital care and the ambulatory care, which contributes to long stays of patients in hospitals. Physicians have to conduct follow up on patient before releasing them, which is a complex process. This hinders the efficiency of delivery of care (Blümel & Busse, 2015).
Conclusion
German healthcare system is highly decentralized. It is management by the three levels of government including the federal, state and local governments, with each having their own responsibilities in the health care system. The US healthcare system is largely privatized and managed by private organizations. Both the US health care system and German healthcare system foster on ensuring delivery of quality services. German consists of an integrated system that ensures high-quality health care services. The US health care system focuses on conducting clinical research to provide evidence-based healthcare services. Evidence-based health care services promote delivery of quality services in the US health care system. German health care system provides universal insurance coverage that has allowed access by all individuals in German to receive quality health care. The Universal coverage has promoted a variety of benefits including grants to young mothers, dental care drugs, and convalescent therapy. The US healthcare system consists of disparities in its health insurance coverage causing millions of Americans not to access quality medical services.
 
 References
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