Privilege and Oppression in our Healthcare Policy

Healthcare Policy

                I was stuck between choosing two policies that I find to be very interesting, and contain a lot of examples of where privilege and oppression can be seen. I debated over doing legal policy and healthcare policy for a while until I finally decided to focus on healthcare policy because I feel as though this is a very controversial topic in which there are many ways people can become privileged or oppressed in the system.

                For some background information, in previous years, we have been introduced to a new system of care called Obamacare. Obamacare requires every American Citizen to have some type of healthcare coverage. Although this appears to benefit everyone, in reality, it changes the quality of care that some people receive versus others. Those who fit the “mythical norm”, usually defined as thin, white, male, young, heterosexual, Christian, and financially secure, are the most likely to be the most privileged in the world of healthcare (Launius and Hassel 73).

                First off, I plan to focus on biological sex. For years women faced oppression in the healthcare system because their bodies were viewed as deformed versions of male bodies (Worcester and Whaley 15). In fact, in one of my health classes I took, I learned that before women’s bodies were viewed as a separate study, they actually conducted both breast cancer studies and vaginal studies on the male body (11). I found this extremely troubling given the fact that for one, breast cancer is more common in females, and for two, men don’t even have a vagina. Thus, it is easy to see how women have faced a lot of oppression throughout the years when it comes to healthcare. With that being said however, we have come a long way. The woman’s body is now seen as something different, and there are separate studies for everything conducted on it. In addition, although men still dominate the healthcare world jobwise, it appears that there are many more women working in the field than ever before. Despite all of the improvements, many women still feel oppressed because their healthcare policy doesn’t include coverage for items such as menstruation supplies and birth control which is something men are privileged to not have to pay for. With that being said, things may change as the Trump committee works to reshape the healthcare policy. Changes aren’t very promising however being that his committee of “experts on women’s health” consists only of men, thus demonstrating that we still carry the shadow of patriarchy above us when healthcare policy is concerned.

                Secondly, another huge area of concern when it comes to the healthcare policy is socioeconomic status. Although everyone is given the right to have healthcare, are some people receiving better healthcare than others based on the amount of monetary resources they have? Absolutely. Individuals that are higher up on the socioeconomic status tend to know people who might know people that provide good healthcare. Not only that, but they have money, and are usually willing to spend it in order to receive the best possible care. Those living at or below the poverty line are most likely going to take whatever they can get, or whatever is offered to them. This definitely shows how our healthcare system does not support equity even though it claims to by ensuring all Americans are covered. I also feel as though this has an impact on the quality of care that healthcare professionals provide as well. Because everyone has to have some type of healthcare insurance, there is a lesser chance for competition because no matter how poor the services are, there are still going to be customers out there that need care. Thus, there is no need to fight for patients when there are always going to be some readily available.

                In addition, I feel as though disabled individuals with either physical or intellectual disabilities face a lot of discrimination and oppression in the healthcare field compared to those who are able-bodied. For example, I have read many articles which talked about how parents were denied certain coverages for children that were either disabled or had chronic illnesses because they were just going to keep running up medical bills that the insurance companies didn’t want to deal with. Insurance companies would much rather cover those in good health because there will be less expensive bills to pay. I find this to be horrible and really degrading to those individuals that were not fortunate enough to be born with perfect health. I think no matter the situation, every individual has the right to receive as good of healthcare as anyone else.

                 Lastly, I do not feel the need to write an entire paragraph on how race plays a role in the healthcare system. Because of “white privilege” we can automatically assume that minorities are less likely to receive the best care options. It is completely unfair, and this is something that really should be worked on in order to get more representation in the healthcare field by minorities. For example, in our Threshold Concepts book, the authors specifically point out that “Racial and Ethnic minorities are more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to report experiencing poorer quality patient-provider interactions. Those patient-provider interactions are often poor quality because providers may bring stereotypical understandings of patients into their treatment” (81). Thus, minorities are not treated as individuals but are more likely to be looked at group wise. All in all, it is easy to see how privilege and oppression plays a huge role in public policy. By picking apart this public policy, we can see that what is said to be equal, isn’t always equal. I have high hopes for a change in this for the future because everyone deserves the best options as much as the next person.