Population Trends In Health Care

The aging population play a major role in healthcare cost in the US. People are living longer than ever before in history. This is of huge significance because the elderly population receive services through publicly funded programs such as Medicaid and Medicare and although many adults are living longer, they usually have chronic and multiple health conditions which require frequent and longer visits to health establishments. This demographic is expected to double in population size by the year 2050, approximately 20% of the population will be 65 years and older. It affects the entire climate of healthcare, providers are concerned with the reimbursement rates which seem to keep decreasing and not keeping up with inflation, and with over half of the workforce in retirement, the people working pay most of the taxes which affects the amount available for funding these programs.

I was shocked when the Cleveland Clinic Foundation announced that they were no longer accepting Caresource insurance which is part of the Medicaid program. I knew that this was going to affect a lot of people who count on Cleveland Clinic Foundation for their care. Also, our advancements in technology have been astonishing but still present as a concern because of the cost to purchase, operate, and maintain the equipment is a huge investment in which sometimes the federal government provides financial coverage. In summary, these predicted increases in health care costs must be looked at in terms of prevention and/or cure and effective planning for the the future must start