Reply to each response individually with 150 words min for each reply and a reference for each.

1. It is rather unfortunate that the health care costs in the United States have been rising over the decades and they are expected to continue doing so in the years to come. Innately, this is not a surprising scenario, given the fact that the citizens are expected to pay high premiums, co-pays, high deductibles and sometimes forced to go back to their pockets so as to access quality health care services. There are a number of reasons that can be utilized to explain the continued increase in health care costs and they include an increasing number of aging populations that comprises of baby boomers. These population is characterized as being at risk, implying that they are most likely to become sick, as a result of the decline in their immune system, meaning that their bodies are unable to fight illnesses compared to that of younger individuals (IHME,2017).

The other reason for increase in health care costs is the increasingly utilization of new and expensive diagnostic tests and treatments, all with the intent of providing quality health care services and in line with the continued technological advancement in the health care field (IHME, 2017). Health care is one of the essential needs of human beings, but unfortunately, the continued increase in health care costs is making it a luxury for some as they cannot affordable and this threatens the health status of the society.

2. The baby boomer population is moving closer and closer to retirement. Around 10,000 baby boomer’s turn 65 each day. Health care costs rise as more and more of these boomer’s leave their private health and insurance and transition to Medicare. This aging population will keep requiring more and more health care as they age. In an effort to control spending on this demographic, preventive health care measures will have to be reinforced and encouraged to keep chronic illnesses from rapidly growing. Chronic diseases account for almost 75% of health care spending. Getting out in front of these on sets is key. “With healthcare spending per person growing at twice the rate of household income, it is not surprising that one in four adults risks their health, and sometimes their life, by foregoing needed medical care due to costs.” (Lyford & Lash, 2019) Another reason for increased health care costs is associated with medical provider shortages. Between nurses and physicians over 50% of them are 55 years or older. This will inevitably cause pressure on facilities and trickle down to patients. The health care system will only need to expand, and providers are not being replaced as fast as their leaving. Attracting medical providers to specific fields will be needed to retain the ability for all these aging patients to be seen, whether that is allowing nurse practitioners more authority to take over like a primary care physician or incentives for physicians to get into family medicine. Changes are needed.

3, The Affordable Care Act has made a lot of improved process in insuring individuals with insurance. But the reason why healthcare regulations have been unsuccessful is because they are faulty. The only way for it to be successful is that they find a way for everyone to insured without any loose gaps. As Shi explained it , it would take a , “fair amount of work still needs to be done to fully understand how to best design and implement value-based payment programs”. ( Shi, 2019, pg. para. 6) The United States spends an extreme amount of money each year for healthcare. As each year goes by, the population increases. It is very hard to grasp any possible improvement. As soon they feel they have a hold, it still isn’t enough. The facts from a study (It’s The Prices, Stupid: Why The United States Is So Different From Other Countries) stated that, “the difference in spending is caused mostly by higher prices for health care goods and services in the United State” ( Anderson,2020, pg. 9,para. 4)