Chapter 1

History of the U.S. Healthcare System

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The student will be able to:

Identify five milestones of medicine and medical education and their importance to health care.

Identify five milestones of the hospital system and their importance to health care.

Identify five milestones of public health and their importance to health care.

Identify five milestones of health insurance and their importance to health care.

Explain the difference between primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention.

Explain the concept of the iron triangle as it applies to health care.

DID YOU KNOW THAT?

When the practice of medicine first began, tradesmen such as barbers practiced medicine. They often used the same razor to cut hair as to perform surgery.

In 2010, the United States spent $2.6 trillion on healthcare spending or 17.6% of the gross domestic product, which is the highest in the world.

In 2011, U.S. Census data indicate there were 48.6 million uninsured U.S. citizens, which is a decrease from 50 million in 2010.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) predicts annual healthcare costs will be $4.64 trillion by 2020, which represents nearly 20% of the U.S. gross domestic product.

The United States is one of only a few developed countries that does not have universal healthcare coverage.

In 2002, the Joint Commission issued hospital standards requiring them to inform their patients if their results were not consistent with typical care results.