affordable healthcare argumentative essay

120+ Healthcare argumentative essay topics [+Outline]

If you’re a nursing student, then you know how important it is to choose Great Healthcare argumentative essay topics.

Here's What You'll Learn

After all, your essay will be graded on both the content of your argument and how well you defend it. That’s why it’s so important to choose topics that you’re passionate about and that you can research thoroughly.

Strong Healthcare argumentative essay topics

To help you get started, here are some strong Healthcare argumentative essay topics to consider:

• Is there a nurse shortage in the United States? If so, what are the causes, and what can be done to mitigate it?
• What are the benefits and drawbacks of various types of Nurse staffing models?
• What are the implications of the current opioid epidemic on nurses and patients?
• Are there any ethical considerations that should be taken into account when providing care to terminally ill patients?
• What are the most effective ways to prevent or treat healthcare-acquired infections?
• Should nurses be allowed to prescribe medication? If so, under what circumstances?
• How can nurses best advocate for their patients’ rights?
• What is the role of nurses in disaster relief efforts?
• The high cost of healthcare in the United States.
• The debate over whether or not healthcare is a human right.
• The role of the government in providing healthcare.
• The pros and cons of the Affordable Care Act.
• The impact of healthcare on the economy.
• The problem of access to healthcare in rural areas.
• The debate over single-payer healthcare in the United States.
• The pros and cons of private health insurance.
• The rising cost of prescription drugs in the United States.
• The use of medical marijuana in the United States.
• The debates over end-of-life care and assisted suicide in the United States.

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Controversial Healthcare topics

There is no shortage of controversial healthcare topics to write about. From the high cost of insurance to the debate over medical marijuana, there are plenty of issues to spark an interesting and thought-provoking argumentative essay.

Here are some Controversial healthcare argumentative essay topics to get you started:

1. Is healthcare a right or a privilege?

2. Should the government do more to regulate the healthcare industry?

3. What is the best way to provide quality healthcare for all?

4. Should medical marijuana be legalized?

5. How can we control the rising cost of healthcare?

6. Should cloning be used for medical research?

7. Is it ethical to use stem cells from embryos?

8. How can we improve access to quality healthcare?

9. What are the implications of the Affordable Care Act?

10. What role should pharmaceutical companies play in healthcare?

11. The problems with the current healthcare system in the United States.

12. The need for reform of the healthcare system in the United States.

Great healthcare argumentative essay topics

Healthcare is a controversial and complex issue, and there are many different angles that you can take when writing an argumentative essay on the topic. Here are some great healthcare argumentative essay topics to get you started:

1. Should the government provide free or low-cost healthcare to all citizens?

2. Is private healthcare better than public healthcare?

3. Should there be more regulation of the healthcare industry?

4. Are medical costs too high in the United States?

5. Should all Americans be required to have health insurance?

6. How can the rising cost of healthcare be controlled?

7. What is the best way to provide healthcare to aging Americans?

8. What role should the government play in controlling the cost of prescription drugs?

9. What impact will the Affordable Care Act have on the healthcare system in the United States?

Hot healthcare argumentative essay topics

Healthcare is always a hot-button issue. Whether it’s the Affordable Care Act, single-payer healthcare, or something else entirely, there’s always plenty to debate when it comes to healthcare. Here are some great healthcare argumentative essay topics to help get you started.

1. Is the Affordable Care Act working?

2. Should the government do more to provide healthcare for its citizens?

3. Should there be a single-payer healthcare system in the United States?

4. What are the pros and cons of the Affordable Care Act?

5. What impact has the Affordable Care Act had on healthcare costs in the United States?

6. Is the Affordable Care Act sustainable in the long run?

7. What challenges does the Affordable Care Act face?

8. What are the potential solutions to the problems with the Affordable Care Act?

9. Is single-payer healthcare a good idea?

10. What are the pros and cons of single-payer healthcare?

Argumentative topics related to healthcare

Healthcare is always an ever-evolving issue. It’s one of those topics that everyone has an opinion on and is always eager to discuss. That’s why it makes for such a great topic for an argumentative essay. If you’re looking for some fresh ideas, here are some great healthcare argumentative essay topics to get you started.

1. Is our healthcare system in need of a complete overhaul?

3. Are rising healthcare costs making it difficult for people to access care?

4. Is our current healthcare system sustainable in the long term?

5. Should we be doing more to prevent disease and promote wellness?

6. What role should the private sector play in providing healthcare?

7. What can be done to reduce the number of errors in our healthcare system?

8. How can we make sure that everyone has access to quality healthcare?

9. What can be done to improve communication and collaboration between different parts of the healthcare system?

10. How can we make sure that everyone has access to the care they need when they need it?

Argumentative essay topics about health

There are many different stakeholders in the healthcare debate, and each one has their own interests and perspectives. Here are some great healthcare argumentative essay topics to get you started:

1. Who should pay for healthcare?

2. Is healthcare a right or a privilege?

3. What is the role of the government in healthcare?

4. Should there be limits on what treatments insurance companies must cover?

5. How can we improve access to healthcare?

6. What are the most effective methods of preventing disease?

7. How can we improve the quality of care in our hospitals?

8. What are the best ways to control costs in the healthcare system?

9. How can we ensure that everyone has access to basic care?

10. What are the ethical implications of rationing healthcare?

Medical argumentative essay topics

• Is healthcare a fundamental human right?

2. Should there be limits on medical research using human subjects?

3. Should marijuana be legalized for medicinal purposes?

4. Should the government do more to regulate the use of prescription drugs?

5. Is alternative medicine effective?

6. Are there benefits to using placebos in medical treatment?

7. Should cosmetic surgery be covered by health insurance?

8. Is it ethical to buy organs on the black market?

9. Are there risks associated with taking herbal supplements?

10. Is it morally wrong to end a pregnancy?

11. Should physician-assisted suicide be legal?

12. Is it ethical to test new medical treatments on animals?

13. Should people with terminal illnesses have the right to end their lives?

14. Is it morally wrong to sell organs for transplantation?

15. Are there benefits to using stem cells from embryos in medical research?

16. Is it ethical to use human beings in medical experiments?

17. Should the government do more to fund medical research into cancer treatments?

18. Are there risks associated with genetic engineering of humans?

19. Is it ethical to clones humans for the purpose

Argumentative essays on mental illness

• Should there be more focus on mental health in schools?
• Are our current treatments for mental illness effective?
• Are mental health disorders more common now than they were in the past?
• How does social media impact mental health?
• How does trauma impact mental health?
• What are the most effective treatments for PTSD?
• Is therapy an effective treatment for mental illness?
• What causes mental illness?
• How can we destigmatize mental illness?
• How can we better support those with mental illness?
• Should insurance companies cover mental health treatments?
• What are the most effective treatments for depression?
• Should medication be used to treat mental illness?
• What are the most effective treatments for anxiety disorders?
• What are the most effective treatments for OCD?
• What are the most effective treatments for eating disorders?
• What are the most effective treatments for bipolar disorder?
• How can we better support caregivers of those with mental illness?
• What role does stigma play in mental illness?

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Should the U.S. Government Provide Universal Health Care?

• History of Universal Health Care

27.5 million non-elderly Americans did not have health insurance in 2021, a decline from 28.9 million uninsured Americans in 2019. The largest group of Americans, almost 155 million non-elderly people, were covered by employer-sponsored health insurance. Less than 1% of Americans over 65 were uninsured, thanks to Medicaid, a government provided insurance for people over 65 years old.

The United States is the only nation among the 37 OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) nations that does not have universal health care either in practice or by constitutional right. Read more background…

Pro & Con Arguments

Pro 1 The United States already has universal health care for some. The government should expand the system to protect everyone. A national health insurance is a universal health care that “uses public insurance to pay for private-practice care. Every citizen pays into the national insurance plan. Administrative costs are lower because there is one insurance company. The government also has a lot of leverage to force medical costs down,” according to economic expert Kimberly Amadeo. Canada, Taiwan, and South Korea all have national health insurance. In the United States, Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE function similarly. [ 178 ] Medicare is the “federal health insurance program for: people who are 65 or older, certain younger people with disabilities, [and] people with End-Stage Renal Disease (permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a transplant, sometimes called ESRD).” Patients pay a monthly premium for Medicare Part B (general health coverage). The 2023 standard Part B monthly premium is $164.90. Patients also contribute to drug costs via Medicare Part D. Most people do not pay a premium for Medicare Part A (“inpatient hospital stays, care in a skilled nursing facility, hospice care, and some home health care”). More than 65.3 million people were enrolled in Medicare according to Feb. 2023 government data. [ 180 ] [ 181 ] Medicaid “provides health coverage to millions of Americans, including eligible low-income adults, children, pregnant women, elderly adults and people with disabilities. Medicaid is administered by states, according to federal requirements. The program is funded jointly by states and the federal government.” More than 84.8 million people were enrolled in Medicaid as of Nov. 2022. [ 181 ] [ 182 ] [ 183 ] The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), often lumped in with Medicaid in these discussions, is a “low-cost health coverage to children in families that earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid. In some states, CHIP covers pregnant women. Each state offers CHIP coverage, and works closely with its state Medicaid program.” CHIP covers more than 6.9 million patients. [ 181 ] [ 182 ] [ 183 ] TRICARE is the “military health system that provides care to almost 10 million active-duty service members, retired personnel, and their families.” Active-duty military members pay $0 for health insurance, while retired members and their families paid a premium up to $1,165 per month (for a member and family) in 2021. [ 184 ] The United States already successfully maintains universal health care for almost 36% of the U.S. population, according to U.S. Census data released in Sep. 2022. As the Baby Boomer generation continues to age and more of the generation becomes eligible for Medicare, estimates suggest about 73.5 million people will use Medcare and about 47% of American health care costs will be paid for by public health services by 2027. [ 185 ] [ 186 ] If the government can successfully provide universal health care for 36% to almost 50% of the population, then the government can provide univeral health care for the rest of the population who are just as in need and deserving of leading healthy lives. Read More

Pro 2 Universal health care would lower costs and prevent medical bankruptcy. A June 2022 study found the United States could have saved $105.6 billion in COVID-19 (coronavirus) hospitalization costs with single-payer universal health care during the pandemic. That potential savings is on top of the estimated $438 billion the researchers estimated could be saved annually with universal health care in a non-pandemic year. [ 198 ] “Taking into account both the costs of coverage expansion and the savings that would be achieved through the Medicare for All Act, we calculate that a single-payer, universal health-care system is likely to lead to a 13% savings in national health-care expenditure, equivalent to more than US$450 billion annually (based on the value of the US$ in 2017). The entire system could be funded with less financial outlay than is incurred by employers and households paying for health-care premiums combined with existing government allocations. This shift to single-payer health care would provide the greatest relief to lower-income households,” conclude researchers from the Yale School of Public Health and colleagues. [ 201 ] According to the National Bankruptcy Forum, medical debt is the number one reason people file for bankruptcy in the United States. In 2017, about 33% of all Americans with medical bills reported that they “were unable to pay for basic necessities like food, heat, or housing.” If all Americans were provided health care under a single-payer system medical bankruptcy would no longer exist, because the government, not private citizens, would pay all medical bills. [ 131 ] Further, prescription drug costs would drop between 4% and 31%, according to five cost estimates gathered by New York Times reporters. 24% of people taking prescription drugs reported difficulty affording the drugs, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) poll. 58% of people whose drugs cost more than $100 a month, 49% of people in fair or poor health, 35% of those with annual incomes of less than $40,000, and 35% of those taking four or more drugs monthly all reported affordability issues. [ 197 ] [ 199 ] [ 200 ] Additionally, 30% of people aged 50 to 64 reported cost issues because they generally take more drugs than younger people but are not old enough to qualify for Medicare drug benefits. With 79% of Americans saying prescription drug costs are “unreasonable,” and 70% reporting lowering prescription drug costs as their highest healthcare priority, lowering the cost of prescription drugs would lead to more drug-compliance and lives not only bettered, but saved as a result. [ 197 ] [ 199 ] [ 200 ] Read More

Pro 3 Universal health care would improve individual and national health outcomes. Since 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the public health, economic and moral repercussions of widespread dependence on employer-sponsored insurance, the most common source of coverage for working-age Americans…. Business closures and restrictions led to unemployment for more than 9 million individuals following the emergence of COVID-19. Consequently, many Americans lost their healthcare precisely at a time when COVID-19 sharply heightened the need for medical services,” argue researchers from the Yale School of Public Health and colleagues. The researchers estimated more than 131,000 COVID-19 (coronavirus) deaths and almost 78,000 non-COVID-19 deaths could have been prevented with universal health care in 2020 alone. [ 198 ] Another study finds a change to “single-payer health care would… save more than 68,000 lives and 1.73 million life-years every year compared with the status quo.” [ 201 ] Meanwhile, more people would be able to access much-needed health care. A Jan. 2021 study concludes that universal health care would increase outpatient visits by 7% to 10% and hospital visits by 0% to 3%, which are modest increases when compared to saved and lengthened lives. [ 202 ] Other studies find that universal health coverage is linked to longer life expectancy, lower child mortality rates, higher smoking cessation rates, lower depression rates, and a higher general sense of well-being, with more people reporting being in “excellent health.” Further, universal health care leads to appropriate use of health care facilities, including lower rates of emergency room visits for non-emergencies and a higher use of preventative doctors’ visits to manage chronic conditions. [ 203 ] [ 204 ] [ 205 ] An American Hospital Association report argues, the “high rate of uninsured [patients] puts stress on the broader health care system. People without insurance put off needed care and rely more heavily on hospital emergency departments, resulting in scarce resources being directed to treat conditions that often could have been prevented or managed in a lower-cost setting. Being uninsured also has serious financial implications for individuals, communities and the health care system.” [ 205 ] Read More

Con 1 Universal health care for everyone in the United States promises only government inefficiency and health care that ignores the realities of the country and the free market. In addition to providing universal health care for the elderly, low-income individuals, children in need, and military members (and their families), the United States has the Affordable Care Act (the ACA, formerly known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act), or Obamacare, which ensures that Americans can access affordable health care. the ACA allows Americans to chose the coverage appropriate to their health conditions and incomes. [ 187 ] Veterans’ Affairs, which serves former military members, is an example of a single-payer health care provider, and one that has repeatedly failed its patients. For example, a computer error at the Spokane VA hospital “failed to deliver more than 11,000 orders for specialty care, lab work and other services – without alerting health care providers the orders had been lost.” [ 188 ] [ 189 ] Elizabeth Hovde, Policy Analyst and Director of the Centers for Health Care and Worker Rights, argues, “The VA system is not only costly with inconsistent medical care results, it’s an American example of a single-payer, government-run system. We should run from the attempts in our state to decrease competition in the health care system and increase government dependency, leaving our health care at the mercy of a monopolistic system that does not need to be timely or responsive to patients. Policymakers should give veterans meaningful choices among private providers, clinics and hospitals, so vets can choose their own doctors and directly access quality care that meets their needs. Best of all, when the routine break-downs of a government-run system threaten to harm them again, as happened in Spokane, veterans can take their well-earned health benefit and find help elsewhere.” [ 188 ] [ 189 ] Further, the challenges of universal health care implementation are vastly different in the U.S. than in other countries, making the current patchwork of health care options the best fit for the country. As researchers summarize, “Though the majority of post-industrial Westernized nations employ a universal healthcare model, few—if any—of these nations are as geographically large, populous, or ethnically/racially diverse as the U.S. Different regions in the U.S. are defined by distinct cultural identities, citizens have unique religious and political values, and the populace spans the socio–economic spectrum. Moreover, heterogenous climates and population densities confer different health needs and challenges across the U.S. Thus, critics of universal healthcare in the U.S. argue that implementation would not be as feasible—organizationally or financially—as other developed nations.” [ 190 ] And, such a system in the United States would hinder medical innovation and entrepreneurship. “Government control is a large driver of America’s health care problems. Bureaucrats can’t revolutionize health care – only entrepreneurs can. By empowering health care entrepreneurs, we can create an American health care system that is more affordable, accessible, and productive for all,” explains Wayne Winegarden, Senior Fellow in Business and Economics, and Director of the Center for Medical Economics and Innovation at Pacific Research Institute. [ 190 ] [ 191 ] Read More

Con 2 Universal health care would raise costs for the federal government and, in turn, taxpayers. Medicare-for-all, a recent universal health care proposal championed by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), would cost an estimated $30 to $40 trillion over ten years. The cost would be the largest single increase to the federal budget ever. [ 192 ] The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that by 2030 federal health care subsidies will increase by $1.5 to $3.0 trillion. The CBO concludes, “Because the single-payer options that CBO examined would greatly increase federal subsidies for health care, the government would need to implement new financing mechanisms—such as raising existing taxes or introducing new ones, reducing certain spending, or issuing federal debt. As an example, if the government required employers to make contributions toward the cost of health insurance under a single-payer system that would be similar to their contributions under current law, it would have to impose new taxes.” [ 193 ] Despite claims by many, the cost of Medicare for All, or any other universal health care option, could not be financed solely by increased taxes on the wealthy. “[T]axes on the middle class would have to rise in order to pay for it. Those taxes could be imposed directly on workers, indirectly through taxes on employers or consumption, or through a combination of direct or indirect taxes. There is simply not enough available revenue from high earners and businesses to cover the full cost of eliminating premiums, ending all cost-sharing, and expanding coverage to all Americans and for (virtually) all health services,” says the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. [ 195 ] An analysis of the Sanders plan “estimates that the average annual cost of the plan would be approximately $2.5 trillion per year creating an average of over a $1 trillion per year financing shortfall. To fund the program, payroll and income taxes would have to increase from a combined 8.4 percent in the Sanders plan to 20 percent while also retaining all remaining tax increases on capital gains, increased marginal tax rates, the estate tax and eliminating tax expenditures…. Overall, over 70 percent of working privately insured households would pay more under a fully funded single payer plan than they do for health insurance today.” [ 196 ] Read More

Con 3 Universal health care would increase wait times for basic care and make Americans’ health worse. The Congressional Budget Office explains, “A single-payer system with little cost sharing for medical services would lead to increased demand for care in the United States because more people would have health insurance and because those already covered would use more services. The extent to which the supply of care would be adequate to meet that increased demand would depend on various factors, such as the payment rates for providers and any measures taken to increase supply. If coverage was nearly universal, cost sharing was very limited, and the payment rates were reduced compared with current law, the demand for medical care would probably exceed the supply of care–with increased wait times for appointments or elective surgeries, greater wait times at doctors’ offices and other facilities, or the need to travel greater distances to receive medical care. Some demand for care might be unmet.” [ 207 ] As an example of lengthy wait times associated with universal coverage, in 2017 Canadians were on waiting lists for an estimated 1,040,791 procedures, and the median wait time for arthroplastic surgery was 20–52 weeks. Similarly, average waiting time for elective hospital-based care in the United Kingdom is 46 days, while some patients wait over a year. Increased wait times in the U.S. would likely occur—at least in the short term—as a result of a steep rise in the number of primary and emergency care visits (due to eliminating the financial barrier to seek care), as well as general wastefulness, inefficiency, and disorganization that is often associated with bureaucratic, government-run agencies. [ 17 ] [ 190 ] Joshua W. Axene of Axene Health Partners, LLC “wonder[s] if Americans really could function under a system that is budget based and would likely have increased waiting times. In America we have created a healthcare culture that pays providers predominantly on a Fee for Service basis (FFS) and allows people to get what they want, when they want it and generally from whoever they want. American healthcare culture always wants the best thing available and has a ‘more is better’ mentality. Under a government sponsored socialized healthcare system, choice would become more limited, timing mandated, and supply and demand would be controlled through the constraints of a healthcare budget…. As much as Americans believe that they are crockpots and can be patient, we are more like microwaves and want things fast and on our own terms. Extended waiting lines will not work in the American system and would decrease the quality of our system as a whole.” [ 206 ] Read More

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15.10 Persuasive Essay

Learning objective.

• Read an example of the persuasive rhetorical mode.

Universal Health Care Coverage for the United States

The United States is the only modernized Western nation that does not offer publicly funded health care to all its citizens; the costs of health care for the uninsured in the United States are prohibitive, and the practices of insurance companies are often more interested in profit margins than providing health care. These conditions are incompatible with US ideals and standards, and it is time for the US government to provide universal health care coverage for all its citizens. Like education, health care should be considered a fundamental right of all US citizens, not simply a privilege for the upper and middle classes.

One of the most common arguments against providing universal health care coverage (UHC) is that it will cost too much money. In other words, UHC would raise taxes too much. While providing health care for all US citizens would cost a lot of money for every tax-paying citizen, citizens need to examine exactly how much money it would cost, and more important, how much money is “too much” when it comes to opening up health care for all. Those who have health insurance already pay too much money, and those without coverage are charged unfathomable amounts. The cost of publicly funded health care versus the cost of current insurance premiums is unclear. In fact, some Americans, especially those in lower income brackets, could stand to pay less than their current premiums.

However, even if UHC would cost Americans a bit more money each year, we ought to reflect on what type of country we would like to live in, and what types of morals we represent if we are more willing to deny health care to others on the basis of saving a couple hundred dollars per year. In a system that privileges capitalism and rugged individualism, little room remains for compassion and love. It is time that Americans realize the amorality of US hospitals forced to turn away the sick and poor. UHC is a health care system that aligns more closely with the core values that so many Americans espouse and respect, and it is time to realize its potential.

Another common argument against UHC in the United States is that other comparable national health care systems, like that of England, France, or Canada, are bankrupt or rife with problems. UHC opponents claim that sick patients in these countries often wait in long lines or long wait lists for basic health care. Opponents also commonly accuse these systems of being unable to pay for themselves, racking up huge deficits year after year. A fair amount of truth lies in these claims, but Americans must remember to put those problems in context with the problems of the current US system as well. It is true that people often wait to see a doctor in countries with UHC, but we in the United States wait as well, and we often schedule appointments weeks in advance, only to have onerous waits in the doctor’s “waiting rooms.”

Critical and urgent care abroad is always treated urgently, much the same as it is treated in the United States. The main difference there, however, is cost. Even health insurance policy holders are not safe from the costs of health care in the United States. Each day an American acquires a form of cancer, and the only effective treatment might be considered “experimental” by an insurance company and thus is not covered. Without medical coverage, the patient must pay for the treatment out of pocket. But these costs may be so prohibitive that the patient will either opt for a less effective, but covered, treatment; opt for no treatment at all; or attempt to pay the costs of treatment and experience unimaginable financial consequences. Medical bills in these cases can easily rise into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, which is enough to force even wealthy families out of their homes and into perpetual debt. Even though each American could someday face this unfortunate situation, many still choose to take the financial risk. Instead of gambling with health and financial welfare, US citizens should press their representatives to set up UHC, where their coverage will be guaranteed and affordable.

Despite the opponents’ claims against UHC, a universal system will save lives and encourage the health of all Americans. Why has public education been so easily accepted, but not public health care? It is time for Americans to start thinking socially about health in the same ways they think about education and police services: as rights of US citizens.

Online Persuasive Essay Alternatives

Martin Luther King Jr. writes persuasively about civil disobedience in Letter from Birmingham Jail :

• http://www.stanford.edu/group/King/frequentdocs/birmingham.pdf
• http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/documents/Letter_Birmingham_Jail.pdf
• http://www.oak-tree.us/stuff/King-Birmingham.pdf

Michael Levin argues The Case for Torture :

• http://people.brandeis.edu/~teuber/torture.html

Alan Dershowitz argues The Case for Torture Warrants :

• http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2011/09/07/the-case-for-torture-warrants/

Alisa Solomon argues The Case against Torture :

• http://www.villagevoice.com/2001-11-27/news/the-case-against-torture/1

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Exploring what works, what doesn’t, and why.

Healthcare is a human right – but not in the United States

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The Supreme Court’s ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson in June is just the latest blow to health rights in the United States. National medical associations in the U.S. agree that abortion is essential to reproductive healthcare. So why would abortion not be protected as such? Because the U.S. does not, and never has, protected a right to health.  

Good health is the foundation of a person’s life and liberty. Injury and disease are always disruptive, and sometimes crippling. We might have to stop working, cancel plans, quarantine, hire help, and in cases of long-term disability, build whole new support systems to accommodate a new normal.

The U.S. remains the only high-income nation in the world without universal access to healthcare. However, the U.S. has signed and ratified one of the most widely adopted international treaties that includes the duty to protect the right to life. Under international law, the right to life simply means that humans have a right to live, and that nobody can try to kill another. Healthcare, the United Nations says, is an essential part of that duty. In 2018, the U.N. Committee on Civil and Political Rights said the right to life cannot exist without equal access to affordable healthcare services (including in prisons), mental health services, and notably, access to abortion. The U.N. committee mentioned health more than a dozen times in its statement on the right to life.

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The bottom line is: the U.S. can’t claim to protect life if it fails to protect health. And it has consistently failed on all three of the U.N.’s measures— the latest being access to abortion.

In the U.S., our debates around healthcare, and especially abortion, are hampered by a lack of right to health. Instead, the Supreme Court in 1973 protected access to abortion through the rights to privacy and due process, not health. Privacy is mentioned only twice by the U.N. committee commentary on the right to life.

Since Dobbs, several state legislatures have declared it fair game to criminalize abortion procedures even in cases where pregnancy threatens maternal health or life. Despite ample evidence that restrictive abortion laws lead to spikes in maternal mortality and morbidity—core public health indicators—the Court prior to the Dobb’s decision has defended abortion as merely a matter of privacy, not health or life. We know this is a myth. Abortion is deeply tied to the ability to stay healthy and in some cases, alive.

Regardless, our political parties remain deeply polarized on access to healthcare, including abortion. But lawmakers should know there is historical backing in the U.S. for elevating a right to health. None other than U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt, first proposed healthcare as a human right in his State of the Union address in 1944, as part of his ‘Second Bill of Rights.’ His list featured aspirational economic and social guarantees to the American people, like the right to a decent home and, of course, the right to adequate medical care.

Eleanor Roosevelt later took the Second Bill of Rights to the U.N., where it contributed to the right to health being included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. The right to health is now accepted international law, and is part of numerous treaties, none of which the U.S. Senate has seen fit to ratify. The U.S. conservative movement has historically declared itself averse to adopting rights that might expand government function and responsibility. In contrast, state legislatures in red states are keen to expand government responsibility when it comes to abortion. The conservative movement condemns government interference in the delivery of healthcare—except when it comes to reproductive health. The American Medical Association has called abortion bans a “direct attack” on medicine, and a “brazen violation of patients’ rights to evidence-based reproductive health services.”

Excepting access to abortion, U.S. lawmakers have largely left healthcare to the markets, rather than government. True, the government funds programs like Medicaid and Medicare but these programs vary significantly in quality and access by state, falling far short of providing fair, equitable, universal access to good healthcare.

The only two places where the U.S. government accepts some responsibility for the provision of healthcare are 1) in prisons and mental health facilities; and 2) in the military. While healthcare services in the U.S. prison system are notoriously deficient, they nevertheless exist and are recognized as an entitlement, underpinning the right to life. As an example, in 2005 a federal court seized control of the failing healthcare system in California’s Department of Corrections citing preventable deaths. In the military, free healthcare is an entitlement, and the quality of that care is deemed good enough even for the U.S. president.

So why doesn’t everyone in the U.S. have the same rights?

It is an uphill battle in a country that sees health and healthcare as a private matter for markets and individuals to navigate. But if we want to improve public health in the U.S. we need to start legislating healthcare as a right—and recognize that achieving the highest possible standards of public health is a legitimate government function.

photo: Tony Gutierrez / AP Photo

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Should Healthcare be Free for Everyone Essay

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Health protection is one of the basic human rights because everyone wants to be healthy. At the same time, assistance in ensuring this health should come from the state as a guarantor of the protection of the person. The right to health is a fundamental aspect of any society; without a health system, this right cannot be fulfilled. Many aspects of similar institutions worldwide are paid, which hinders access to medicine for some people. In this way, a free healthcare system could lead to equality.

First, health care refers to absolute human rights that any state cannot alienate. Thus, by depriving a person of this right, the state violates ethical standards and can significantly harm the health of people who cannot afford paid medicine. A free healthcare system could provide everyone access to basic health services such as prevention, treatment of illness and injury, and access to medicines. Free medical care would help to establish full equality among all groups of the population, thus eliminating many of the divisions that currently exist in society. In this way, people could become much healthier and happier because many health problems would be solved.

The second argument favoring a free healthcare system is the economic factor. This is because healthy citizens can contribute more to the country’s economy. Citizens who are properly healed will be able to feel better, and investigators will be able to work more productively, ultimately leading to increased economic growth. In addition, a free health care system can significantly affect private businesses since companies do not have to invest in payments to constantly provide insurance for citizens. It was possible to include part of this amount instead as a separate tax, and thus both the state and firms could earn more money. Thus, companies will be able to redirect the financial resources of their organizations to the development of their kind of activity. This would increase competition in all sectors of the economy and thus improve the quality of business. Increasing the turnover and revenue of companies can then lead to the payment of large taxes and an improvement in the position of the national economy.

As a counterargument, it can be said that transferring the entire healthcare system to a free regime would create many difficulties both at the transition stage and in the future. Indeed, to fully make medicine accessible, it will be necessary to carry out many reforms that can significantly burden the economy. In addition, many private clinics will also have to be dealt with and either leaves the possibility of such services or transfer them to state dates. Financing all medical institutions from the country’s budget can be complicated and costly. In this regard, it would be necessary to look for additional sources of income to support the economy. However, moving to a free system can result in greater cost savings, as in Canada or the UK.

In conclusion, we can say that the health care system should be accessible and free for all citizens who need help, as this is one of the most important human rights that cannot be neglected. In addition, establishing such state care can help stimulate economic growth since most people who are now in poor health will be able to work. This will help companies develop more intensively and not spend money on paying insurance for employees. There are some downsides to moving to a public system, such as high initial process costs. However, in the future, this can be fully compensated. Based on all the factors considered, it can be concluded that a free healthcare system should be implemented.

• Dealing with Employees' Compensation
• AHIP's Support of Medicare Buy-In Policy
• Taxpayers’ Reaction to Payment of Tax
• Moving Toward Holistic and Preventive Care
• Discussion: Healthcare Payment Options
• Healthcare Cost Depending on Chronic Disease Management of Diabetes and Hypertension
• Reducing Healthcare Spending: Annotated Bibliography
• Costing Effect on Canadian Healthcare After COVID-19
• Billing and Reimbursement in Healthcare
• The Affordable Care Act: Cutting Costs
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• Chicago (N-B)

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Center for American Progress Action

The Importance of Assuring Affordable Health Care for All

Statement of cap action senior fellow judy feder before the house energy and commerce committee subcommittee on health.

CAP Action Senior Fellow Judy Feder testifies on the importance of assuring affordable health care for all Americans.

Download this testimony (pdf)

Chairman Pallone, Congressman Deal, and Members of the Committee, I am honored to be here today to testify on the importance of assuring affordable health care for all Americans. As you well know, health reform is critical to restoring prosperity for our nation’s families. Reform means reducing the crushing burden of rising health care costs on America’s families, businesses, and governments at all levels. Achieving that goal requires streamlining Medicare and refocusing our health care delivery system on prevention, primary care, and treatments that work. But it also requires that everyone, all the time, have affordable health insurance—regardless of where they work, their income, their age, or their health status. Affordable health insurance is the key to a productive work force, small business innovation, and the economic as well as health security of our nation’s families. My focus today is on those families: how lack of affordable health insurance undermines their health and economic security and how health reform can and must assure affordability in order to restore families’—and the nation’s—well-being.

The evidence on affordability

As health care costs continue to grow faster than the economy as a whole—not to mention faster than family incomes—individuals and families have felt the pinch of escalating health spending. People feel that pinch not only in insurance premiums, but also in the payments they make toward services their insurance covers (through deductibles, copayment, and other cost-sharing arrangements) and in payments they make for services that are not covered by their health insurance policies. Affordability—or unaffordability—has to look at all three.

The problem of unaffordability is most apparent for the nearly 47 million Americans who lack health insurance. Roughly two-thirds of Americans without health insurance have incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty level—or approximately $44,000 for a family of four. Most people without health insurance are workers or live in families with a worker, but do not have health coverage through an employer.[1] With the annual average cost of employer-sponsored health insurance nearing $13,000 in 2008, health insurance is clearly unaffordable for families who must purchase it on their own.[2]

Sadly, even people who actually have health insurance increasingly face affordability problems when it comes to paying for health care. Research documents that a growing number of Americans with health insurance face affordability problems for health insurance and for health care. Researchers define affordability in a number of ways. One set focuses on medical spending as a share of income, characterizing families that exceed specified thresholds as economically threatened or underinsured. For example, a recent analysis by the Commonwealth Fund identified families as underinsured if they had out-of-pocket medical spending that absorbed at least 10 percent of family income, or, for low-income adults (defined as 200 percent of the federal poverty level), at least 5 percent of family income; or if they faced deductibles of at least 5 percent of family income. Using these tests, the study identified 25 million adults who had health coverage as underinsured in 2007—a 60-percent increase from the 15.6 million Americans who were underinsured in 2003. [3]

Similarly, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality researchers Jessica Banthin and Didem Bernard found that while 15.8 percent of adults spent more than 10 percent of their family income on health care services in 1996, by 2003 the proportion of adults bearing what has historically been considered catastrophic financial burdens had increased to 19.2 percent of the population, or 48.8 million individuals.[4] An additional analysis by Jessica Banthin, Peter Cunningham, and Didem Bernard also determined that by 2004, financial burdens had increased to the point that, for low-income families, private coverage no longer provided adequate financial protection.[5]

Another approach has examined affordability problems directly—exploring families’ actual problems paying medical bills. According to the Center for Studying Health System Change, one in seven Americans under age 65 reported problems paying medical bills in 2003—a figure that jumped to one in five Americans by 2007. This analysis indicates that even moderate levels of out-of-pocket spending relative to family income—that is, spending that is well below the 5 or 10 percent of family income considered to be underinsured by the studies just cited—created medical bill problems. For example, two-thirds of the individuals who reported trouble paying medical bills spent 5 percent or less of their family income on health care.[6] As author Peter Cunningham noted, many families have little wiggle room within their family budgets for large or unexpected out-of-pocket health care expenses. And even a relatively low level of health care spending compared to family income can create financial stress for low-income families.

Medicaid and CHIP, established to provide special protection for low-income and modest income families, do not necessarily prevent these problems. First, no matter how low their incomes, working-aged adults who are not parents of dependent children (or are not disabled) are not eligible for Medicaid (except in states with waivers), and, in many states, parents earning the minimum wage have too much income to qualify for Medicaid protection.

For populations they do cover, Medicaid and CHIP have been modified to give less recognition to low-income families’ limited ability to absorb significant out-of-pocket health care spending. The traditional Medicaid program limits cost-sharing responsibilities to nominal deductibles and copayments for most services, and exempts children, pregnant women, and other vulnerable groups from service-related cost-sharing. The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 made some important changes to Medicaid’s traditional limitations on cost-sharing, thus exposing even some low-income children to cost-sharing that can equal 5 percent of family income. The CHIP program, which typically serves children with somewhat higher—although still modest—incomes also utilizes a 5 percent of income cap on aggregate cost-sharing.

The risk of being underinsured or experiencing financial problems due to health spending varies not only by family income but also by health status. Health care affordability is particularly elusive for individuals with chronic illness and other conditions that require ongoing, often costly, medical care. In particular, individuals who are older, have an activity limitation, have a chronic condition such as diabetes, heart disease, or arthritis, or have experienced stroke, are more likely to spend a high proportion of their income on health expenses. (See chart next page). If these individuals are not covered by an employer-sponsored health plan, or lose this coverage, their ability to purchase coverage in the nongroup market is limited at best. Far from serving as a safety net, the non-group market systematically denies coverage, limits benefits, or charges excessive premiums to individuals with pre-existing conditions or whom they perceive as likely to need care. Ironically, then, underinsurance or financial problems is most likely to arise for people who get sick—the very population that insurance is supposed to protect.

As stated at the outset, affordability problems do not reflect a single feature of insurance—its presence or absence, its premiums or its benefits. Rather they result from the interplay among various aspects of insurance design: premiums, deductibles, co-insurance and other cost-sharing, and spending on services that are not covered by health insurance. This means that insurance designs that aim to make premiums more affordable by imposing substantial deductibles or low annual lifetime benefit limits offer a false promise: They place individuals and families at substantial financial risk of facing unaffordable health care costs when they get sick. Similarly, benefit packages that constrain covered services—by excluding, for example, prescription drug or mental health benefits, placing arbitrary day or visit limits on specific benefits, or steeply tiering prescription drug cost-sharing—leave families at risk of being unable to afford necessary but uncovered services—again, undermining the very purpose for having insurance in the first place.

The consequences of affordability problems

A strong and growing body of literature demonstrates that unaffordability of health insurance makes health care unaffordable and unavailable. As the Institute of Medicine recently noted, there is a chasm between the health care needs of people without health insurance and access to effective health care services. People without health insurance are more likely to delay care, to get less care, and to die when they get sick.[7]

Evidence suggests that people who are underinsured can experience very similar problems getting needed care. According to the Commonwealth Fund, underinsured individuals are two to three times as likely as insured individuals to forgo various needed medical services because of cost.[8] Of sicker underinsured adults, a full two-thirds went without needed care due to cost, including half of individuals with a chronic condition forgoing necessary medications.[9] In a recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey, concerns about affording needed medical care led insured individuals to cut back on care due to cost. Responses included postponing care (34 percent), skipping a recommended medical visit or treatment (30 percent), not filling prescriptions (27 percent), and skipping doses or cutting pills (21percent).[10]

People who are underinsured not only face the medical problems of inadequate treatment; but they also face financial problems from the treatment they actually get. High on the list is bankruptcy. Nearly half of all bankruptcies in the United States are related, at least in part, to health care expenses. And of those facing medical bankruptcies, roughly three-quarters had health insurance at the onset of their bankrupting illness.[11] Of sicker underinsured adults, three-fifths reported having been contacted by a collections agency. In a 2007 survey, respondents reported making difficult choices between using up a lifetime of savings, running up credit card debt, skipping the purchase of other necessities, or trying to take out a mortgage.[12]

Home mortgage foreclosure, another personal financial catastrophe, is also related to health care expenses. Seven out of 10 respondents in a recent survey of borrowers in foreclosure self-reported unmanageable medical bills as an underlying cause of their foreclosure, or had experienced other medical disruptions to their income, such as lost work due to illness or using home equity to pay medical bills.[13]

Insurance that makes care unaffordable can be a problem for anyone facing serious illness, no matter what its cause. But an examination of the problems facing patients with cancer makes clear how people are dealing with overwhelming financial problems at the very point they are coping with overwhelming medical conditions. A recent report prepared by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the American Cancer Society illustrates how much people are actually “spending to survive.”[14] Some patients who actually have insurance can pay more than $100,000 for their treatment because of high deductibles, high cost-sharing, and limited lifetime spending caps that shift the financial risk of care to the individual. And health insurance underwriting and rating practices leave many individuals whose cancer has been treated—like many others with significant health events or chronic illnesses—unable to obtain insurance against future illness.

Principles for assuring affordable health insurance

Assuring all Americans affordable health insurance is, in my view, the most fundamental goal of health reform. Families cannot be economically secure as long as they face financial catastrophe when illness strikes. And people cannot lead healthy and productive lives as long as they cannot afford the care they need when they get sick. Enacting health reform is a challenging task. But the concepts of affordability are straightforward. It’s not enough to make health insurance affordable; affordable health insurance has to make health care affordable.

As you move forward with reform legislation, I therefore urge you to consider four basic principles.

First, keep your eye on total spending. Affordability depends not just on individual and family premium contributions, but also on deductibles, cost-sharing obligations, and other health care spending. Beware of a desire to keep premiums low by making cost-sharing high. If only some components of family health care spending “count” toward a consideration of what individuals and families can contribute toward their health care costs, some Americans—most likely those with ongoing, chronic illnesses—will continue to grapple with unmanageable and unaffordable health care expenses.

Second, benefits matter. Health insurance worthy of the name has to work for people when they are sick. Despite claims, which I’m sure you’ve heard, that “any insurance is better than none,” insurance that leaves people without necessary protections is simply not good enough. Adequate benefit packages with a defined set of services are another critical lynch-pin to health care affordability. If a health insurance policy doesn’t cover the services people need when they get sick, it doesn’t provide the financial protection Americans need and legitimately expect from health insurance coverage.

Third, affordability depends on income. Low-income families should be expected to contribute a lower proportion of family income toward their health care expenses, in recognition of their more limited ability to absorb unpredictable health care costs.

Finally, insurance must stop discriminating against sick people. Because premium prices will have a substantial effect on overall healthcare affordability, by extension so will insurance market rules that determine whether rates can vary based on people’s “pre-existing conditions” or other health-related characteristics. As long as insurers can deny coverage, limit benefits or charge higher rates based on people’s age or health status, insurance will remain unaffordable for people who know in advance they need its protections. Meaningful health reform cannot fail to assure that health insurance is affordable for people who have been (or whom insurers believe are likely to become) sick.

Enacting health reform is a challenging task. But achieving affordable health care for all Americans will be worth the effort. I applaud your commitment to achieving that goal and I look forward to working with you to achieve it.

[1] Kaiser Family Foundation, The Uninsured: A Primer , October 2008, available at: http://www.kff.org/uninsured/upload/7451-04.pdf .

[2] Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Education Trust, “Employer Health Benefits 2008 Annual Survey,” available at: http://ehbs.kff.org/?page=charts&id=1&sn=6&p=1 .

[3] C. Schoen, S. Collins, J. Kriss and M. Doty, “How Many are Underinsured? Trends Among U.S. adults, 2003 and 2007,” Health Affairs 27 (4) (2008): w298-2309.

[4] J. Banthin and D. Bernard, “Changes in Financial Burdens for Health Care: National Estimates for the Population Younger than 65 Years, 1996 to 2003,” JAMA 296 (22) (2006): 2712-2719.

[5] J. Banthin, P. Cunningham and D. Bernard, “Financial Burden of Helath Care, 2001-2004,” Health Affairs 27 (1) (2008):188-195.

[6] P. Cunningham, C. Miller and A. Cassil, “Living on the Edge: Health Care Expenses Strain Family Budgets,” Research Brief, Center for Studying Health System Change, No. 10, December 2008.

[7] Institute of Medicine, “America’s Uninsured Crisis: Consequences for Health and Health Care,” Report Brief, February 2009, available at: http://www.iom.edu/Object.File/Master/63/122/America%27s%20Uninsured%206%20pager%20FINAL%20for%20web.pdf .

[8] C. Schoen, “Insured But Not Protected,” Health Affairs (2005): hlthaff.w5.289v1.

[10] D. Rowland, “The Adequacy of Health Insurance,” Testimony before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, February 24, 2009, available at: http://www.kff.org/uninsured/upload/7870.pdf .

[11] D. Himmelstein, E. Warren, D. Thorne, S. Woolhandler, “Illness and Injury as Contributors to Bankruptcy,” Health Affairs (2005): w5-63:w5-73.

[12] Cathy Schoen, “Insurance Design Matters,” Commonwealth Fund, February 24, 2009.

[13] C.T. Robertson, R. Egelhof, and M. Hoke, “Get Sick, Get Out: The Medical Causes of Home Foreclosures,” Health Matrix , 18 (2008): 65-105, available at: http://works.bepress.com/christopher_robertson/2

[14] Karyn Schwartz et al, “Spending to Survive,” Kaiser Family Foundation and American Cancer Society, February 200, available at. http://www.cancer.org/downloads/accesstocare/Spending_to_Survive.pdf

The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. A full list of supporters is available here . American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.

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Argumentative Essay on Health Care Cost

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Published: Mar 13, 2024

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Escalating costs, implications for individuals and society, potential solutions, rising drug prices, price variation for medical services, administrative costs.

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Ural State Medical University Fees 2024-25, Campus, Ranking, Hostel, And Admission Procedure

Ural State Medical University , established in 1930, stands as a prominent hub of scientific and educational excellence for medicine study in Russia . It hosts a diverse community of approximately 5000 undergraduate and postgraduate students engaged in medicine degree programs spanning Preventive Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Nursing, Social Work, and Clinical Psychology. The institution also offers internship programs in 31 specialties, residency programs in 61 specialties, and postgraduate studies in 42 specialties.

The degree programs in General Medicine and Pediatrics hold accreditation from the Agency of Public Education Quality Management and Career Development. These programs, alongside Dentistry and Preventive Medicine, are recognized among the top educational initiatives in innovative Russia.

Ural State Medical University 2024-25 Highlights

Established in 1930 as the Sverdlovsk State Medical Institute, the “ Ural State Medical University ” under the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation has evolved into a comprehensive institution dedicated to medical education and research. Presently, the university accommodates a thriving community of over 7,000 students, including undergraduates, interns, residents, graduate students, and trainees.

The academic landscape is structured across 58 departments, spanning 8 faculties and departments. Learning experiences are enriched through partnerships with 40 clinical bases strategically located in premier medical institutions, research facilities, Rospotrebnadzor bodies and institutions, city and regional pharmacies, and the university’s own dental clinic. This clinic stands out for its state-of-the-art facilities, boasting cutting-edge equipment that contributes to a high standard of medical care and research.

Notably, numerous alumni of the institute have risen to significant positions as statesmen and leaders in healthcare and medical science. Distinguished individuals include Fedor Galaktionovich Zakharov, Maria Dmitrievna Kovrigina, Vasily Vasilyevich Parin, Boris Tikhonovich Velichkovsky, Arkady Nikitich Vorobyov, Vasily Nikolaevich Klimov, Vladimir Ivanovich Starodubov, Angelina Konstantinovna Guskova, Vasily Lazarev Grigoryevich, Uyba Vladimir Viktorovich, Khalfin Ruslan Albertovich, Nikonov Boris Ivanovich, Yastrebov Anatoly Petrovich, and Kutepov Sergey Mikhailovich. Their success reflects the university’s commitment to nurturing accomplished professionals in the field of medicine and related disciplines.

Ural State Medical University Official Website

https://usma.ru/en/main/

Ural State Medical University Address:

Ulitsa Repina, 3, Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, 620014

Ural State Medical University Fee Structure 2024-25

Total Budget of MBBS Study at Ural State Medical University, Russia

The total budget of studying medicine at Ural State Medical University for 6 years is 25-27 Lakhs. This amount includes the tuition fee, hostel charges, food and mess, living expenses and other expenses of the student on an average. The amount may vary however, from student to student.

Advantages of Studying MBBS at Ural State Medical University:

Advanced Educational Facilities:

The university offers state-of-the-art facilities to support the educational process, including a Center for Practical Skills and a well-equipped Central Research Laboratory.

A library with a substantial collection, 90% of which comprises educational literature published within the past 5-10 years, ensures students have access to up-to-date resources.

Research and Academic Support:

The institution boasts a Scientific Society of Young Scientists (NOMUS) and a Scientific and Educational Center named “Perspektiva,” fostering an environment of research and academic exploration.

The university encourages extracurricular activities through the Office of Extracurricular Activities, which encompasses the Union of Students and Postgraduates, a volunteer movement association, a council of hostels, the Center for Leisure and Aesthetic Education, and a sports club.

Diverse Extracurricular Opportunities:

The extracurricular activities available, including sports facilities, sports grounds, and a ski base, contribute to a vibrant student life, allowing individuals to pursue personal, creative, and career ambitions.

Exceptional Faculty:

The staff at Ural State Medical University is a crucial factor in ensuring the quality of education. The university takes pride in its teaching staff, which includes a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, honored scientists, honored doctors, and recipients of prestigious awards.

A notable 23% of the teaching staff hold doctorate degrees, a remarkable figure among medical universities in the country.

Outstanding Alumni Achievements:

Many graduates have attained prominent positions as statesmen, heads of medical institutions, and renowned scientists in Russia and abroad. Notable alumni include ministers of health, deputy ministers, pilot-cosmonauts, and academicians of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences.

International Collaborations and Impactful Research:

Ural State Medical University is recognized as a center of medical science, actively engaging in joint research with esteemed institutions and organizations worldwide.

Collaborations extend to the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, federal research institutes, business enterprises, and international institutions, fostering innovation and contributing to the development of the region.

Cutting-edge Medical Contributions:

University scientists actively contribute to the development, implementation, and improvement of modern diagnostic and treatment methods in the healthcare sector. This includes innovations in minimally invasive and robot-assisted surgeries, brachytherapy, molecular genetics techniques, nanotechnologies in dentistry and pharmacy, among others.

Mission-driven Development Strategy:

The university’s mission, “For the benefit of the health of the Urals – to study, heal, educate!” underscores its commitment to societal well-being through education, healthcare, and research. This mission guides the institution’s policy and development strategy.

Scientific Medical Library at Ural State Medical University:

The Scientific Medical Library at Ural State Medical University, named after Professor V.N. Klimov, has been an integral part of the institution since its inception in 1931, coinciding with the commencement of classes at the medical faculty of the Sverdlovsk State Medical Institute.

Key Features:

Diverse Collection:

The library’s collection encompasses educational, scientific, reference, and informational publications, both in print and electronic formats.

Specialized materials cover a wide range of medical disciplines, including general medicine , medical and preventive care, pediatrics, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, and social work.

Historical Significance:

Founded in 1931, the library has played a crucial role in supporting the academic and research endeavors of the university over the years.

The library has witnessed the evolution of medical education and research at the university since its early days.

Library Fund Volume:

The library boasts a substantial collection with a volume of 597,000 copies of publications, ensuring that students and faculty have access to a wealth of resources to support their academic pursuits.

Academic Council Recognition:

The library’s importance is underscored by the decision of the Academic Council of Ural State Medical University on May 21, 2010, officially naming it after Professor V.N. Klimov.

This recognition reflects the library’s pivotal role in supporting the academic mission of the university and its commitment to excellence in medical education and research.

The Scientific Medical Library stands as a testament to the rich history and dedication to academic excellence at Ural State Medical University, providing a vital resource for students, faculty, and researchers in the medical field.

Student Life at Ural State Medical University:

Other Educational Activities:

Department Visits for Preparatory Courses:

The Dean’s office organizes visits to various departments of Ural State Medical University, including anatomy and physical education, to familiarize preparatory course students with the university’s structure and activities. This aims to facilitate their adaptation and introduce them to their future educational environment.

Cultural and Educational Excursions:

Joint preparation and participation in state and national holidays, coupled with visits to historical sites, contribute to a rich cultural and educational experience for students.

The university fosters a sense of community by organizing excursions and cultural activities that enable students to explore Russian customs and traditions.

Student’s Day Celebrations:

The Dean’s office collaborates with the Union of Students and Postgraduates of USMU to organize cultural and creative events dedicated to Student’s Day. These events include intellectual competitions, showcasing talents, and broadening horizons for both international students and those in preparatory courses.

Russian Maslenitsa Festival:

The celebration of Russian Maslenitsa involves representatives from the Dean’s office, international students, and the Union of Students and Postgraduates. This festival provides a platform for introducing Russian customs, folk games, and sports competitions, fostering cultural exchange.

Sports and Leisure: Ural State Medical University Official Website

Inclusive Sports Participation:

International students actively engage in physical education, sports competitions, and various creative events, becoming integral members of student social life.

Collaboration with Russian students in competitions, attendance of theaters and exhibitions, and the organization of recreational evenings contribute to a vibrant multicultural atmosphere.

International Training and Adaptation Center:

Supervised by the Dean’s office of international students, this center plays a crucial role in assisting international students in adapting to the new educational and life conditions. It ensures their full participation in the scientific, cultural, and social aspects of university life.

Tutor Support and Cultural Exchange:

School of Tutors:

The establishment and organization of a school of tutors provide support for international students, helping them overcome language barriers, adapt to the new environment, and organize their leisure time.

Intercultural Communication:

Regular meetings between Russian tutors and international students foster intercultural communication, where they engage in various activities such as playing musical instruments, singing, dancing, and discussing student-related issues.

Russian Club:

The Russian Club serves as a platform for sharing insights into Russian culture, customs, and traditions. It facilitates discussions on life and study experiences, encouraging international students to share their perspectives on their countries.

The club organizes celebrations of national holidays, events highlighting the history and culture of different countries, and activities aimed at developing socio-cultural skills among students.

Student Empowerment:

The center is established to ensure students’ rights to participate in the management of the educational process, address important life issues, and promote social activity and initiatives among both Russian and international students.

Overall, the student life at Ural State Medical University is characterized by a diverse range of educational, cultural, and sports activities, fostering a dynamic and inclusive environment for students from various backgrounds.

Hostel Facilities at Ural State Medical University:

Accommodation for Foreign Citizens:

Foreign citizens admitted under interstate agreements share student dormitories with Russian students, fostering a sense of community and cultural exchange.

Optimal Living Conditions:

The campus is dedicated to creating optimal living conditions in the dormitories to ensure the well-being and comfort of its residents.

Efficient Hostel Operation:

Rational operation of hostels is a priority, emphasizing maintenance, cleanliness, and efficient management.

Event Organization:

The campus organizes events related to settlement, accommodation, educational processes, and social activities to enhance the overall student experience.

Educational and Social Support:

The campus plays a crucial role in organizing the educational process, providing social work, and offering socio-pedagogical support to facilitate the adaptation of students.

Dormitory Living:

Diverse Student Population:

Over 1,600 students from Ural State Medical University call the campus home, fostering student self-government bodies and opportunities for self-realization, leadership development, and organizational skills.

Room Configurations:

Students reside in rooms accommodating 2-4 individuals, providing a balance between communal living and personal space.

Study Halls and Amenities:

Each building features study halls for students to engage in self-training during their free time, promoting academic engagement.

Living rooms are equipped with furniture and essential amenities, contributing to a comfortable living environment.

Shared Facilities:

Shared kitchens on each floor and showers on the ground floors of the buildings contribute to the communal living experience, fostering interaction and a sense of community among residents.

Student Councils:

Each dormitory has a self-governing body known as the student council. This council coordinates the activities of floor elders, organizes self-service work within the dormitory, and plans various events to enhance the overall living experience.

Medical Care and Services:

The campus, as a structural subdivision of the university, provides therapeutic and diagnostic medical care to students. It also organizes and conducts preventive, anti-epidemic, and sanitary-hygienic measures, prioritizing the health and well-being of its residents.

In summary, the hostel facilities at Ural State Medical University prioritize creating a supportive and comfortable living environment, promoting student engagement, and ensuring the overall well-being of its diverse student population.

About The Sverdlovsk City

Sverdlovsk Oblast is a federal subject (oblast) located in the Ural Federal District of Russia. Here are some key details about Sverdlovsk Oblast:

Capital: The administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast is Yekaterinburg, which is also the fourth-largest city in Russia. Yekaterinburg is a major industrial and cultural hub and serves as the economic and administrative center of the region.

Geography: Sverdlovsk Oblast is situated in the eastern part of the Ural Mountains, which form a natural boundary between Europe and Asia. The oblast has diverse landscapes, including mountains, forests, and plains.

Economy: The region has a diverse and robust economy, with key industries including metallurgy, machinery, chemicals, and mining. Yekaterinburg, in particular, is known for its industrial and economic significance.

Education and Culture: Sverdlovsk Oblast is home to several educational institutions and cultural landmarks. Yekaterinburg, being a major city, has numerous universities, museums, theaters, and historical sites, contributing to the cultural and intellectual life of the region.

History: The oblast has a rich history, and its development is closely tied to industrialization and the growth of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Yekaterinburg, in particular, is known for its historical significance, including being the place where the last Russian Emperor, Nicholas II, and his family were executed in 1918.

Natural Resources: Sverdlovsk Oblast is rich in natural resources, including minerals such as iron ore, copper, and gold. The presence of these resources has played a significant role in the development of the region’s mining and metallurgical industries.

Tourism: The region attracts tourists with its natural beauty, historical sites, and cultural attractions. The Ural Mountains offer opportunities for outdoor activities, and Yekaterinburg’s historical sites, including the Church on the Blood (built on the site of the Romanovs’ execution), are popular tourist destinations.

Transportation: Sverdlovsk Oblast is well-connected by transportation networks. Yekaterinburg, as a major city, has an international airport, and the Trans-Siberian Railway passes through the region, contributing to its accessibility and connectivity.

Population: As of my last knowledge update in January 2022, Sverdlovsk Oblast had a diverse population. Yekaterinburg, as the largest city, is a cultural melting pot with residents from various ethnic backgrounds.

Cost of Living:

The cost of living in Sverdlovsk Oblast, like in any region, can vary depending on factors such as the city or town, lifestyle, and personal spending habits. Here are some general considerations regarding the cost of living in Sverdlovsk Oblast, focusing on its capital city, Yekaterinburg:

Accommodation: The cost of housing can vary based on factors such as location, size, and amenities. In Yekaterinburg, rental prices for apartments may range from moderate to relatively high, with prices generally being more affordable compared to major cities like Moscow or St. Petersburg.

Utilities: The cost of utilities, including electricity, heating, cooling, water, and garbage, is typically reasonable compared to Western European countries. However, it can vary based on individual consumption and the size of the accommodation.

Food: Grocery prices are generally affordable, especially if you buy local products. Eating out in restaurants or cafes may vary like 2 USD -5 USD in cost depending on the establishment and the type of cuisine.

Transportation: Public transportation in Yekaterinburg is available and relatively affordable. The cost of a monthly transportation pass or individual tickets can contribute to overall living expenses like 8 USD.

Healthcare: Healthcare expenses can vary based on individual needs and whether individuals have private health insurance. Russia has a public healthcare system, and some residents may also opt for additional private insurance coverage.

Entertainment and Leisure : The cost of entertainment and leisure activities, such as going to the cinema, theater, or cultural events, can vary. Yekaterinburg offers a range of cultural and recreational opportunities.

Advantages of MBBS in Russia For Indian Students

Studying MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery) in Russia offers several advantages, making it an attractive option for international students. Here are some key advantages:

Affordability: Tuition and living expenses in Russia are generally lower than in many Western countries. This makes pursuing MBBS in Russia a cost-effective option for many students.

World-Class Education: Russia has a long-standing tradition of excellence in medical education. Many universities, including those offering MBBS programs, are recognized globally for their high academic standards and rigorous curriculum.

English-Medium Programs: Several Russian universities offer MBBS programs in English, making it accessible to international students who may not be fluent in Russian. This facilitates a smoother learning experience for students from different linguistic backgrounds.

International Recognition: Medical degrees obtained from Russian universities are recognized by major medical councils and organizations worldwide. This recognition enables graduates to practice medicine in various countries after fulfilling additional licensing requirements.

Cultural Diversity: Studying in Russia provides students with exposure to a rich cultural and historical environment. Interaction with diverse student populations and exposure to different medical practices contribute to a well-rounded educational experience.

Modern Facilities: Many medical universities in Russia are equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, laboratories, and medical technology. This ensures that students receive practical, hands-on training in line with global medical standards.

Clinical Training Opportunities: Russian medical universities often collaborate with well-established hospitals and clinics, providing students with opportunities for practical clinical training. This exposure is essential for developing practical skills and gaining real-world experience.

Global Perspective: The MBBS curriculum in Russia is designed to provide students with a global perspective on healthcare. This prepares graduates to adapt to diverse healthcare systems and contribute effectively in an international context.

Research Opportunities: Russia is known for its contributions to scientific and medical research. Students pursuing MBBS in Russia may have opportunities to engage in research projects and contribute to advancements in the field.

Post-Graduation Opportunities: Graduates from Russian medical universities have the option to pursue postgraduate studies or gain practical experience in various countries. The international recognition of Russian medical degrees enhances opportunities for further education and career advancement.

It’s important for prospective students to thoroughly research specific universities, programs, and entry requirements to ensure a successful and fulfilling educational experience in Russia.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Does Ural State Medical University provide accommodation facilities for international students?

Yes, Ural State Medical University offers dedicated accommodation facilities for international students.

How is the student residence organized?

A separate block comprises 5 dormitories specifically designated for student residence.

What is the maximum number of students in a room?

The maximum occupancy in a room is limited to 3 students, ensuring a comfortable living environment.

How are the rooms furnished?

All rooms are fully furnished, providing essential amenities for students’ convenience.

Are there common sharing facilities available?

Yes, common facilities such as washing machines and refrigerators are available for shared use among residents.

Is Internet access available in the dormitories?

Internet facilities are provided, and students can access them upon completing the required payment.

Are there alternative accommodation options for international students?

Yes, the Crystal Hotel, located in Yekaterinburg, Korolenko, offers rooms in a student dormitory format. These rooms are both comfortable and cost-effective for international students at Ural State Medical University. The hotel rooms come equipped with a bed, desk, chair, wardrobe, and bedside table.

What is the fee structure of Ural State Medical University?

The total MBBS fees at South Ural State Medical University for the 2023 session amount to 18,37,500 Rupees.

What is the ranking of Ural Medical University?

Ural Medical University is ranked 15th in the country and 1255th in the world.

What are the eligibility criteria for studying medicine at Ural State Medical University?

International students applying for the bilingual program must have successfully completed the 12th standard with a minimum of 60%. Additionally:

Students must have studied Biology, Physics, and Chemistry.

Qualification in the NEET-UG exam is mandatory.

Ural State Medical University offers accommodation in a dedicated student residence block, comprising five dormitories. Key features include:

Maximum occupancy of three students per room.

Fully furnished rooms with shared facilities, including washing machines and refrigerators.

Internet facilities are available upon payment.

The Crystal Hotel in Yekaterinburg, Korolenko, near the university, provides affordable student dormitory-style rooms equipped with a bed, desk, chair, wardrobe, and bedside table.

What is the cost of studying medicine at USMU, Russia?

The estimated annual expense for international students studying at Ural State Medical University (USMU) is USD 4,800.

Are scholarships available for international students studying at USMU, Russia?

Yes, the Russian Federation Government offers State Scholarships for international students. Annually, the Russian Government awards scholarships to 18,000 people in 2021, 23,000 people in 2022, and 30,000 people in 2023, for those seeking to enter universities in the Russian Federation.

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Buildings In Russia: 15 Architectural Marvels Every Architect Must See

A country with a harsh climate, Russia, is home to the warmest of people and even cozier architecture. Most of its architecture gets its grandeur from the Communist era. The colorful & gilded baroque facades, canals, and factories from Soviet times. Forests of tall pines & birch also dot the landscape of the country. Amongst these are tucked meadows, and log houses (which are the true architectural marvels). Architecture in Russia is deeply significant of its glorious yet tumultuous past. Churches to museums, all speak of various contexts, philosophies, people, beliefs, and the masses.

1. The Winter Palace

To begin with, St. Petersburg’s most renowned structure, a typical baroque stone palace built in 1711. What we see today is a neoclassical update of the palace. Standing tall at the palace square, it has views into the Neva river. The standout feature is the facade, in resplendent green color looks beautiful at night too. It was for the longest time the residence of the Tsars, which later became a part of the State Hermitage Museum. 

2. Bolshoi Theatre

Home to world-famous and oldest ballet companies and opera, The Bolshoi Theatre, is a major 240-year-old legacy. It’s a building with grand footage, to say the least. An imposing facade of neoclassical columns, an intricate pediment with galloping horses. It has been remade and restored multiple times, as it bore the test of times and war. Today, red velvet seats and gilded corners welcome you into the extravagant space. 

3. Shukhov Tower

Also known as Shabolovka Radio Tower, it is an emblem of structural genius in the city of Moscow. Built during the industrial age, between the world wars, it is a 40-storey (160m high) tower designed as a lightweight structure. Built-in metal frame structure dominates the Moscow skyline. It was used for broadcasting up until 2001, post which it stands as a city landmark, and tourist attraction. 

4. General Staff Building

The General Staff Building is a prominent architectural masterpiece located in St. Petersburg, Russia. It is renowned for its stunning Empire-style design and stands as an essential attraction in the city. The building was designed by the distinguished Italian architect Carlo Rossi during the early 19th century.

One of the most notable features of the General Staff Building is its magnificent arch, which captivates visitors with its grandeur and elegance. The arch is an impressive element of the building’s facade and showcases the remarkable craftsmanship and attention to detail typical of Empire-style architecture.

5. Hermitage Museum

Another St. Petersburg classic, unlike many, is a very prestigious museum. Today, it is combined with the winter palace and a theatre to be called “hermitage”. It has close to 2000 rooms, which have been added over time. It even has satellite museums across Russia and Europe. 

6. Neva Bridges

Engineering & architecture marvels of the city, these series of bridges in St. Petersburg are a sight to behold. Built-in iron, in an art deco style, is more functional than aesthetics. These are 12 drawbridges, most of which open in the evenings, to allow for ships to pass through. 

7. Peter and Paul Fortress

Often overshadowed by the hermitage, it is what gave birth to the city of St. Petersburg. It served as a military base and government office. It also later became the burial ground for the Russian Imperial family. 

It played a key role in the city’s turbulent history. 

8. Loft Project ETAGI

More recent exhibit galleries in ST. Petersburg, with 3000 sq.m of space. It hosts contemporary works of lesser-known local young artists. A former bread factory was restored to bring the space to life. The space is home to one of its kind container city. 

9. White Tower

The iconic tower is an emblem of the city of Yekaterinburg. Designed by M. Reisher, as a modernist tower, as a signifier of Soviet Russia. It was abandoned until 2010 when students of architecture took it upon themselves to revive it. It is now a public display gallery on the history and construction of the tower.  

10. TASS Building 

Home to a state-run news agency in Moscow, the ITAR – TASS building, is the media and broadcasting headquarters. Since before the fall of the USSR, it recently marked its 40th anniversary. It stands as a maker of a shining era in Russia ’s history, in sandstone, black labradorite, and marble.

11. Stalin’s Skyscrapers

Gothic style, tall buildings almost imitating wedding cakes. One of the 7 is the Moscow State University, these were built post world war II. Many refer to them as 7 sisters as headquarters for the university, hotels, ministries, and two residential structures. They are heavily ornamented on the facade, with Soviet realist art and carving. 

12. Sanduny Banya

A bathhouse from the 19th century, with a uniquely Russian experience. The exquisite oriental decor would rekindle memories of an old polo club or gymkhanas. An all-cream bath area, a wood-paneled steam room, and a parlor mark the space. This is a go-to spot for a pleasing bane experience in Moscow . 

13. The Moscow Metro

Covering close to 180 stations, this is a spectacular underground railroad system. Established and laid during the soviet times, it is now the most reliable and used form of transport. The stations have an amazing architectural quality of their own. The arches, chandeliers, cornices, and marble-clad columns, speak of a different time. 

14. Lenin’s Tomb

Lenin’s Tomb, also known as Lenin’s Mausoleum, is a famous landmark located in Red Square in Moscow, Russia. It is not a modernist building but a structure of historical significance. The tomb serves as the final resting place of Vladimir Lenin, the prominent leader of the Russian Revolution and the first head of the Soviet Union.

The design of Lenin’s Tomb is not an ode to modernist architecture; instead, it reflects a neoclassical style with clear influences from ancient Egyptian and Babylonian architecture. The architect, Alexey Shchusev, aimed to create a structure that exuded grandeur and solemnity, befitting the memory of the revolutionary leader.

15. St. Basil’s Cathedral 

A postcard for not just Moscow but also Russia, the famous onion domes of the church are hard to miss. One of the best and most beautiful examples of the Russian architectural style – is whimsical and colorful. Bricks and ceramics with different patterns adorn the spires, arches, and domes of St. Basil’s, giving the building a dynamic flair.

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