The rapidly increasing cost of health care in the United States has made access to medical care difficult for many citizens. Additionally, the number of uninsured people is increasing due to job losses and reduced benefits. This trend is expected to continue. The negative effect of reduced access to health care can have alarming effects on the economic well-being of the nation. The passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) marks the beginning of a significant transformation of healthcare systems in the United States. After multiple attempts at health care reform over the years, the nation's leaders were able to pass this historic legislation that will ensure that most Americans will have access to health insurance by early 2014. However , does access to insurance guarantee access to real health care? ? Will the costs of insurance and associated health care be economically and socially affordable? The fundamental question facing the United States is whether health care is a basic human right available to all or a service available only to working insured persons whose employers can cover the cost or to those who are eligible for social programs. How do other industrialized countries manage health care? Why is our system so different and inefficient? Universal insurance coverage was discussed during the birth of government benefits. Since Theodore Roosevelt in 1912, politicians have worked to include some form of health insurance in the United States' national plan. Over the years, the American public has supported some form of national health care coverage as long as individuals do not bear the increased costs; therefore, no universal coverage legislation has been passed... middle of paper ...... in OECD countries: Why is the United States spending so much more than other countries? Senate (2009).Owen, CL (2009). Consumer-driven healthcare: response to global competition or threat to social justice? [Article]. Social Work, 54(4), 307. Single-payer national health insurance. (2009) Retrieved July 19, 2010 from http://www.pnhp.org/print/facts/single-payer-resourcesSummary of the new health reform law. (2010): The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. The American healthcare system: the best in the world, or simply the most expensive? (2001). Maine Nurse, 3(4), 7. Wilensky, GR (2010). health care reform version 1.0. [Notice]. hfm (Healthcare Financial Management), 64(5), 50. Woodward, D., Drager, N., Beaglehole, R., & Lipson, D. (2001). Globalization and health: a framework for analysis and action. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 79, 875-881.