Hot Spots in the Medical Field

·      State Regulation of Fast Food Chains

Policies that counter fast food consumption might offer governments a way to tackle the growing obesity epidemic. In a study I recently just read, nations with stronger government regulations—such as producer protection, price controls, intervention on competition, and taxes—experienced slower increases in fast food purchases and average BMIs. The lack of regulation of fast food could be fueling our country’s obesity epidemic. (See https://www.futurity.org/fast-food-need-government-regulation/)

·      Mandatory Child Vaccinations

No US federal laws mandate vaccination, but all 50 states require certain vaccinations for children entering public schools. Most states offer medical and religious exemptions; and some states allow philosophical exemptions.Each year, about 2.1 million people die from vaccine-preventable diseases. Many children may not receive their necessary first year vaccinations because of lack of availability, religious beliefs, and safety concerns. Vaccinations have significantly reduced the disease rate throughout the world. (See https://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/vaccine-education-center/global-immunization/diseases-and-vaccines-world-view)

·      The Right to Free Health Care

Proponents of the right to health care say that no one in one of the richest nations on earth should go without health care. They argue that a right to health care would stop medical bankruptcies, improve public health, reduce overall health care spending, help small businesses, and that health care should be an essential government service. Opponents argue that a right to health care amounts to socialism and that it should be an individual 's responsibility, not the government 's role, to secure health care. They say that government provision of health care would decrease the quality and availability of health care and would lead to larger government debt and deficits. (See https://www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/the-state-of-healthcare-in-the-united-states/health-care-as-a-human-right/)

Out of these three topics I feel like I am most passionate about the last. I personally believe that health care should be a basic human right. Because progress towards Universal Health Coverage involves a range of complex technical challenges, it is easy to forget that moving toward it is a political processthat involves negotiation between different interest groups in society over the allocation of health benefits and who should pay for these benefits. Although these are valid concerns, there are much more benefits to the U.S. adopting a dorm of national health care system than to keep its current system. This current health care debate hits close to home for every American.

Hot Topics of Skilled Nursing Facilities

- Low Staffing Levels

Nursing homes and long-term care centers have struggled as of late to maintain their staffing levels to qualify for federal and state funding. Because of the low wages for certified nurse assistants (CNA) and registered nurses (RN), it is difficult to slow down the high turn over rates of the industry. Record low unemployment rates have driven other workers to higher wage industries. Nursing home companies are working hard to find the balance between raising wages while maintaining a profit in an extremely low-profit industry. (See Source).

-Elderly Abuse

Low staffing has lead to lowering standards in the highering process which lead to an increase in abuse cases. One of the biggest struggles for administration in these facilities is creating detailed training programs and incentives to continually increase the quality of care. One way nursing home administrators prevent abuse is through detailed documentation of cases to enhance clear communication between the facility's staff and state surveyors. (See Source).

-Changes in Arbitration Clauses

Before November of 2016 patients who entered Skilled Nursing facilities were forced to sign an arbitration agreement upon arrival. Which means any dispute had to be settled with a mediator before going to court. This restricted the patient's ability to voice their concerns about the treatment they received in the facility. Now, arbitration is optional and can be signed after admission if an issue comes up. This gives the patient more legal freedom when communicating their concern and receiving justice. (See Source).

All of these issues are heavily influenced by federal and state funding, as facilities receive the majority of their reimbursement from Medicare and Medicaid. Based on my exposure to the industry over the years I have seen serious inefficiencies in the processes that provide funding. Skilled Nursing care has improved dramatically since its beginnings, but there is still a lot of potential solutions to provide better care that will save both the federal government and taxpayers billions of dollars.