I’m studying for my Economics class and need an explanation.

I will ask you to post your opinion about a topic that is part of our national discussion about health care. The Op-Ed posts should be about ¾ – 1 page long (narrow margin, 11-point font).

Step 1) Read the document, The Waiting Room: Summary and statistics about the US health care system. (This document is in week 9 folder)

Step 2) Watch the documentary, The Waiting Room. (1 hour, 22 minutes): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flwMHcZeTpo

Step 3) Answer two of the five questions below.

1) Barbara Johnson, an elderly diabetes and dialysis patient, asks CNA Johnson for something to eat. Johnson provides her with a sandwich. Under what circumstances is food part of medical care? If food is a medical necessity, should its cost be covered by health insurance? Why or why not?

2) We see a woman on the phone trying to get a ride home: “So could you meet me or you don’t want to sound like it. Because I got a gang of Vicodin, I got … I got bus tickets, I’ve got a ten-dollar card for Safeway to buy food if you want that for like three packs.” What is or should be the role of transportation in the health care system? How do people in your community get to and from the medical ser­vices they need? Are those transportation methods efficient? Who absorbs the cost?

3) In the beginning of the film, there is an issue with a patient who doesn’t speak English. Fortunately, she has a man with her who translates. Why would the nurse want to hear from the patient herself and not from the man accompanying her? Who should supply translation for someone who doesn’t arrive with an English speaker? Should they be able to bill Medicaid, Medicare, or an insurance provider for the ser­vices of a translator? Why or why not?

4) We see a woman and her family praying to relieve their loved one’s pain. In your view, what is the role of faith in healing? What role should religion play in the overall design of an effective health care system? In which situations and structures can faith traditions be most helpful and where might they create obstacles?

5) Dr. White describes regular ER visitors like Carl Connelly: “After a certain point we know them. We know them by first name, they know us by first name.” He knows Connelly has substance abuse issues, but still has to do a full work up on him. Why? What are the ethical and legal issues that prevent the ER from turning away patients like Connelly or from putting them last in line through a triage process?