According to a news study, almost half of Americans have experienced significant healthcare quality issues, and three quarters say the entire U.S. healthcare system needs to be revamped. Americans are also worried about their ability to pay for future healthcare. The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System, which commissioned the study, reported that 42 percent of American say they've experienced quality problems, including "poorly coordinated, inefficient, or unsafe care at some time during the past two years, including unnecessary care or treatment recommended by a doctor, failure to provide important information or test results to other doctors or nurses, medical errors, or duplicate tests." There's support for changing the healthcare system too, which could be why we've seen so many attempts by lawmakers to propose new healthcare models. Americans support expanding the use of IT in medicine, having a "medical home," and improving coordination efforts.
To get more perspective on Americans' health concerns:
- see the press release about the study