Comparison Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Comparison Paper - Essay Example However, what the two types of health and healthcare have in common, is an attention to the optimization of accessibility and equality, focusing on healthcare for all of the public, and all of the community, rather than just those who can afford it. In terms of the history of public and community health, public healthcare in the US started without any government involvement. It was basically run by religious organizations. Many hospitals maintain their religious roots today, in fact. After the Depression and the rise of social welfare, government support behind healthcare was increased and supported, and this created a support system. Then this social support system, a foundation of public health, was phased out more recently through the application of programs like managed care, Medicare and Medicaid being government, but with increasing business models and private involvement as well. Community healthcare today, based on this history, is often put in opposition to mainstream healthcare in America, because it focuses more on the client and less on the bottom line of profits. Public health, however, is often more mixed up with issues of managed care and government programs. â€Å"Grass roots initiatives contributed in part to the passage of Medicare, and they can work again. Ted Marmor says that â€Å"pressure groups that can prevail in quiet politics are far weaker in contexts of mass attention — as the AMA regretfully learned during the Medicare battle† (Dauner et al., 2005). Public healthcare today is a system that has drawbacks and advantages, depending on one’s perspective. Because it offers a wide variety of services in a cost-effective manner, many people support managed care as a balanced solution to healthcare which can potentially unite the agendas of community and public health. â€Å"Traditionally, health promotion and education efforts within the United States have