Cost, Access, and Quality
In discussing people with exceptional health needs, there needs to be an understanding that in the United States, health disparities and inequities are more significant when compared to other countries (Shi & Singh, 2019). Accessibility to health care for specific populations is an obstacle, and at certain times, many health-related issues are not addressed due to inaccessibility. Undeserved or vulnerable people are groups that face increased disparities of deprived, psychosomatic, and social health as compared to other populations. Shi and Singh (2019) synonymously label these groups as therapeutically underprivileged or marginalized. The cause of this state of vulnerability is mainly due to discrimination.
One of the vulnerable populations is homeless since they constitute a large population in the United States and consist of lone children or families with children. Shi and Singh (2019) report that the homeless population is three to four times more at risk of premature death than the general population. The homeless population consists of children who need to get their vaccinations and regular checkups as well as war veterans who have significant medical histories that cross over into mental and psychological issues. As a whole, their medical needs range from respiratory issues, cardiovascular issues, injuries and intoxications, infectious or parasitic diseases that all require medical attention. Much of their challenges stem from financial problems, and that bleeds into their eligibility for health insurance. Furthermore, they have no transportation to medical facilities, thus unable to access the available healthcare providers. When the homeless are prescribed with medication, they lack proper storage facilities, thus compromising the quality of their prescribed medicine. Similarly, homeless people do not have consistent access to meals to facilitate medical prescriptions that relate to diets, thus an interference to the efficiency of the prescriptions.
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The other vulnerable population is persons living with mental health disorders. Psychiatric disorders are prevalent in adults, children, and both genders. The group also remains a vulnerable public health issue in the U.S. Most common mental issues, according to Shi and Singh (2019), are drug abuse, phobias, and affective disorders. Mental health illnesses are a burden on health expenses and human resource productivity. They cost the U.S. billions of dollars in diagnosis and treatment and remain a primary reason for hospitalization. If untreated, mental illness can lead to suicide, cardiovascular disease, and potentially cancer. Furthermore, as of recent, it does cause social issues as well, since there has been an emergence of easy access to a gun leading to gun violence (Progovac et al., 2018). Many of these individuals do not know that they have an issue that requires treatment, and with a lack of access to health care, they are often overlooked until it is too late. Besides accessibility issues, the group also experiences financial constraints due to unstable income. They also lack insurance covers and face challenges explaining their medical conditions, thus compromising the quality of services rendered to them.
The racial/ethnic minority categories in the U.S. are African Americans, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, American Indian, Hispanic or Latinos, and Asian. Generally, minorities have less access to health care, receive subpar care, and experience worse outcomes. Moreover, they have higher rates of illness and mortality as compared to their white counterparts. Most minorities will also report that discrimination exists even when they do receive care.
Conclusively, states need to put measures that reduce or eliminate health disparities among the minority groups in the U.S. The efforts may target an increase in health care facilities and personnel in regions habited by the minorities. Systems should also be established to ensure that underserved persons are covered and access quality medical services. Such efforts will reduce healthcare disparities among the homeless and those living with mental disorders.
References
Progovac, A. M., Cook, B. L., Mullin, B. O., McDowell, A., Sanchez R., M. J., Wang, Y., & Schuster, M. A. (2018). Identifying gender minority patients’ health and health care needs in administrative claims data. Health Affairs , 37 (3), 413-420. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2017.1295
Shi, L., & Singh, D. A. (2019). Essentials of the U.S. health care system (5th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
