Brasfield Ch.3-5

At the beginning of chapter three, Brasfield clearly identifies the details of when Medicare was implemented and who put it in place. Medicare is the national health care for older Americans and, according to Brasfield, there are four sections that encompass what Medicare covers. Those four sections include hospitalization and skilled nursing facility payments, physician and out patient services, Medicare advantage related to private plans, and outpatient prescription drug coverage. The implementation of Medicare lasted from 1966 through 1969. Then the issues of costs and payments were discussed. An issue that I noticed was that the roles that social security would cover and the roles that Medicare would cover. Both of the roles overlapped in some areas and caused controversy. Then the next major theme in the chapter was core policy issues, which include social insurance versus private insurance, long term fiscal policy, cost control strategies, and more. Lastly the real issue, I feel like is discussed at the end, which is "who should pay for Medicare?". And honestly there is no clear answer. Throughout chapter four the theme of Medicaid is expounded upon. Brasfield says that Medicaid was almost creeping into the system by tagging along with the welfare system that was already in place. For the past couple of decades Medicaid has been growing and becoming a competing element with Medicare because of its growing size and costs. During the Reagan administration, they tried to reduce the growth of Medicaid and discourage the welfare system that was already so large. Medicaid covers so many people and is so big that it is possible that it is too large to deconstruct. The rest of chapter four discusses the future of Medicaid and the costs it will require and size to which it will grow. Chapter five talks broadly about the overall. The United States Health Care is so expensive because of the norms and lifestyle that everyone is used to and expects. I thought that chapter three through five were very descriptive and useful while expressing the actual size and cost of what health care encompasses today in the United States.