American and Japanese Health Care Systems Essay Example

Introduction

The American healthcare system is ranked 37th globally by the World Health Organization. It is renowned for its financial focus making it one of the most expensive care systems in the world. Japan, on the other hand, is a complete contrast to the U.S. Japan boasts of one the cheapest healthcare systems in the world. The country offers affordable health care for all people leading to low mortality rates and high health life expectancy of Japanese people. Comparing the two systems reveals many points of differences and some similarities. Both systems require intensive management and continuous improvement to ensure the advancement of healthcare in line with the global vision of affordable health care for all people.

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A1. Access

The Japanese have more access to health care than American citizens. In Japan, every adult has a health insurance policy that caters for all medical needs. Americans also have a health insurance policy, but it does not account for the unemployed people. Japanese health insurance is run in two dimensions: the government health ministry insurance and the social insurance policy. The health ministry insurance caters for the employed people where the average premiums are $280 per annum, and the social insurance policy provides for unemployed people. The employers pay about 70% of the amount, and the citizens pay the remaining 30% (Ellis et al., 2014). In case a person loses his or her job, he or she does not lose the health insurance cover, but the local government caters for it with special budget allocation. As a result, even the unemployed people have access to quality healthcare services.

Japan is a largely capitalist economy. The country has limited natural resources, and much of the GDP is raised from industrialization and trade. It has a population of about 130 million while the U.S has a population of 326 million. About 80% of all healthcare facilities in Japan are owned by private entities while only 21% of U.S health facilities are privately owned (Mossialos et al., 2016). A common assumption would be that people in the U.S have more access to healthcare since most of the hospitals are either owned by the government or by non-profit organizations (58%). However, that is not the case. A significant number of U.S. citizens live without reliable healthcare services particularly the low-income households.

A2A. Coverage of Medications

Japanese healthcare system is better than the U.S system on coverage of medication. The Japanese government regulates all healthcare services in matters of costs and access. Private and public hospitals have standard prices for medicine and expenses for medical procedures. The ministry of health universally agrees upon the charges. Therefore, the Japanese people from all occupations can receive the best treatment in either public or private hospitals without fear of the costs (Mossialos et al., 2016). For instance, Japan has cheaper MRI scans than the U.S. The Japanese government revises the prices for MRI scans every two years and the associated medication. Hospitals have to comply with the agreed prices lest they get charged with incompliance. The United States health system is composed of many entities. The system offers stratified coverage of the citizens depending on their categories and level of care needed. Specialized medications are assigned to specialized institutions since some facilities lack equipment and expert personnel. In Japan, the health system is universal and cuts across all levels of care.

Coverage of medications is more developed in Japan because the ministry of health liaises with technology industries to produce equipment at lower prices. That was the case with MRI scan equipment allowing virtually all primary health centers to have them. In America, there are no such agreements, and the facilities that have the machines charge top dollar for them. All rounded coverage of medications allows the Japanese to enjoy a healthcare system overseen by the government and satisfy the right to affordable healthcare (Chinta, 2017).

A2B. Referral to See a Specialist

Referrals to see specialists are more advanced in Japan than in the United States. In Japan, patients have an average of 3 appointments more than patients in America (Onishi et al., 2017). It is easier to acquire an appointment with a specialist in Japan than it is in the United States. This is mainly due to the advanced medical insurance cover in Japan than in the United States. When the charges are catered for, patients can do follow up on their condition and monitor their healing over time. Furthermore, due to the universal system of care, referral cases are rare since virtually all health centers have specialized departments and equipment necessary for specialized care.

A2C. Coverage for Preexisting Conditions

The coverage of preexisting conditions in Japan stands at 100% while that of the United States stands at 83% (Ellis et al., 2014). The coverage is primarily because of the affordability of the care in Japan compared to the United States. For instance, Japan caters for all outpatient and home-based care including the prescriptions. Once the older adults retire, their health insurance is moved from the ministry of health scheme to the social insurance run by the local governments. The insurance allows the elderly to receive medication for their preexisting conditions long after they are done with employment. In the United States, it is unfortunate that some of the elderly lose their health insurance upon retirement. However, the 2010 Affordable Care Act was implemented to ensure that all people have access to healthcare at subsidized costs (Chinta, 2017). A key clause in the Act is that every person should be offered medical services regardless of their finances then asked to settle the bills later. The provision has led to the increase in health access to the hitherto 83%.

An added advantage in the Japanese's system is the cash benefits offered to women at childbirth. The benefits allow them to cater for their nutritional needs and support necessities for childbearing. The United States health system has no benefits at delivery except for the insurance of the father and the mother (Reich & Shibuya, 2015). The Japanese system also offers specialized care services such as prosthetics provision and dentures. In most cases, the United States healthcare system provides the specialized services in government hospitals at subsidized fees depending on the complexity. However, the Japanese system does not cater for all specialized treatments. Some physical examinations are charged separately despite the patient's insurance. It does not cover over-the-counter drugs and complex dental procedures. In addition, if the procedures are preexisting, the Japanese system considers them as products of previous medical tests and caters for them under the health insurance policy (Chinta, 2017). The Japanese system thus has more coverage of preexisting conditions than the US system. However, proposed amendments of the 2010 Affordable Care Act are bound to improve the health in the US.

A3. Finance Implications for Healthcare Delivery

Healthcare delivery takes about 8% of Japan's GDP and about 17% of the U.S. GDP (Reich & Shibuya, 2015). Despite Japan having a larger population to care for, it still spends less compared to the United States. Japanese healthcare system contains documented prices and costs as set by the government. The system is thus less financially dynamic than the U.S. system since revisions of the fees and charges are conducted by legislators and take significant amounts of time. For instance, in Japan, admission into a ward shared by four patients ward costs $10 per night per person and $90 for a private hospital ward. The Japanese government raises less capital from rendering medical services than the U.S. due to the focus on quality and access instead of revenue generation. For example, it is illegal for insurance companies to gain profits from health insurance. Health institution that hike prices risk license cancellation and apprehension. As a result of the Japanese healthcare regulations, at least 50% of healthcare facilities are in financial deficit (Mossialos et al., 2016). They cannot cater for their costs and require a surplus budgetary allocation. However, Japan successfully handles the financial implication and focuses on ways of raising revenue to ensure that health costs will be continuously revised downwards. The 2010 Affordable Care Act in the U.S. also aims at managing the financial implications of health to ensure quality above costs.

Conclusion

Japan has a better healthcare system than the United States. Despite her lack of vast natural resources, Japan offers affordable healthcare to all citizens regardless of employment status or class in society. The government controls private hospitals as well as public ones and ensures that costs are within acceptable standards. The United States spends more mainly because the prices are less subsidized than in Japan. Japanese technology companies produce machinery at subsidized costs, and thus the associated treatments fall within the affordable cost gap. However, the systems in both countries require extensive amendments to ensure that they are sustainable and maintain optimum quality.

References

Chinta, D. (2017). Comparing Health Care Systems in Canada/UK, USA and Switzerland to Assess the Direction of US Health Care Reform. GSTF Journal on Business Review (GBR), 2(4).

Ellis, R. P., Chen, T., & Luscombe, C. E. (2014). Comparisons of health insurance systems in developed countries. Encyclopedia of Health Economics, 1.

Mossialos, E., Wenzl, M., Osborn, R., & Sarnak, D. (2016). 2015 international profiles of health care systems. Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health.

Onishi, E., Kobayashi, T., Dexter, E., Marino, M., Maeno, T., & Deyo, R. A. (2017). Comparison of opioid prescribing patterns in the United States and Japan: primary care physicians' attitudes and perceptions. The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 30(2), 248-254.

Reich, M. R., & Shibuya, K. (2015). The future of Japan's health system-sustaining good health with equity at low cost. New England Journal of Medicine, 373(19), 1793-1797.