It is March 2020 and the Covid-19 pandemic has brought America to a complete standstill. As hospitals fill past capacity resources such as medical treatment and doctors become scarce. Nurses are scrambling around overflowing hospitals having to decide who they should save, a question no one should have to answer.

Three years later, in March 2023, the worst of Covid-19 has long since passed. However, in its aftermath America has seen growing disparities in healthcare as people of lower socioeconomic status are unable to pay for expensive quality care.

In many cases health insurance is tied to a person’s employment. When this is the case, a single layoff can put one’s health in danger. Furthermore groups of racial minorities face marginalized healthcare in comparison to their white counterparts. According to the National Library of Medicine, a certain study showed that participants in a study demonstrated many ways in which unequal health care access occurs in healthcare. These included insurance differences, limited time, lack of interpreters, bias, labeling, and stereotypes contributing to racial differences in patient experience and treatments.

In an article by Harvard Health, the malpractice of health insurers is highlighted as well. For example health insurers may hold back on expensive treatment until they are fully sure the patient requires it in an effort to hold down costs. When this is occurs it is potentially damaging to said patient as they must wait longer to receive treatment they had already been prescribed from a physician.

Some ways to help the poor have equal access to healthcare is by making innovative technology more widespread. One example being telehealth, which brought in home access to healthcare to millions during the pandemic who were afraid of leaving their homes. However, these technologies are prevented from being widespread due to government based health insurance not covering them.

Healthcare in America doesn’t have a single solution that can solve all its problems. Because of this consistent small steps must be made in the right direction so that healthcare becomes more equal across different socioeconomic groups and various racial communities.

The current system is broken. What other changes in policy could lead to positive change in American healthcare?