Government Role In Health Care Essay

In by far the majority of countries, governments play a role in the provision or funding of health services. Although the nature of public sector involvement is often a source of fierce political debate, it is presumed that governments need to play a role in the provision of healthcare. Perhaps the most captivating justification for the government to intervene in healthcare is that healthcare, like education, everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances …show more content…
There does exist a private sector alongside the NHS but an important difference is that though patients receive public health care for free, when seeking private health care they have to cover the costs of the medical treatment themselves or through private insurance. Some hospital groups provide insurance plans (e.g. Bupa) and some insurance companies have deals with particular private hospital groups. According to a recent study, NHS reached a record of £8.7 billion, since 2006 (The Guardian, 2013). In 2013, The NHS spent £7billion buying services from private …show more content…
It is the fifth biggest employer in the world (The Telegraph, 2012), with a workforce of 1.3 million people working for the NHS currently (Health & Social Care, 2015). The NHS provides free treatment to millions of its country citizens 365 days per year. With the population growing larger and living longer, its putting extra demands on the NHS in terms of both time and cost. The NHS have reduced the number of patients being sent for treatment in private hospitals and offers treatment at a lower cost than a private sector. According to Hare, chief executive at NHS, patient safety is the first priority of NHS clinical services (The Telegraph,