This is the essays prompt: Give the background and history of your topic. (AT LEAST TWO PARAGRAPHS)
1. Set the stage: draw your reader into the issue/topic.
Explain why the issue is a contemporary controversial social and political problem. You need to establish the serious social effects of the problem. You are giving the HISTORY of your topic to establish context.
Answer the general journalistic questions (not necessarily in this order–these are just to give you an idea of what the two paragraphs should cover):
What is the problem? What is the controversy—the point of disagreement between the two sides—over this problem?
Who are affected by this problem? Who are the two sides? (For example, who is against changing the current system and why and who is for changing the current system and why?)
How are people negatively affected by this problem?
Where is this issue a problem? (We will be focusing on the United States, so make sure your research is focused on the U.S.)
When did this problem first emerge (an era or decade will do, no need for a specific date)? How long has this issue been perceived as a problem?
Why is it an urgent social problem? “Who cares about this issue and why? So, what–what reasons do people have for addressing or caring about this issue? What difference will it make?”
2. Following the Rogerian Argument techniques, clearly discuss who the two opposing sides on the topic are and the main point of disagreement between the two sides.
3. Establish that there is some point of common ground between the opposing sides regarding the issue. In other words, what do these two sides share, agree on, or have in common, why, etc.
4. Finally, in the concluding sentence, clearly state what your position (“Thesis”) regarding this controversy is. Remember the who, what, why, etc. For the thesis make sure you have the following–any order is fine as long as it makes sense and is all there:
Topic: (What are you talking about in the essay? What is the main topic?) the U.S. healthcare system
Argument: (Based on the main topic, give a general reason for what you want to prove or argue for in your essay? Do NOT list every point you want to make in the body paragraphs) shouldimplement improvements
Reasoning: (Why? Why should we do what you want? Who or what will be affected) it is broken and inefficient
Counterargument: (Why do some people not agree with you? What do they think?) somepeople believe the U.S. healthcare market we have is fine
Here is an example of what the general, umbrella thesis (NOT giving every paragraph topic) can look like (do NOT use this thesis in. your essay under any circumstances):
Sample: Although some people believe the U.S. health care market functions well because the system works for them, the U.S. healthcare system should implement necessary improvementsbecause the current system is broken and inefficient.
Some additional vocabulary you may want to understand for this essay:
Universal health care: This is NOT a health care system. Every first world country, except the United States of America, has universal health care. The World Health Organization states that universal health coverage means “that all people have access to the health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship.” Every country decides on the type of system (National Health Insurance, Social Insurance, Bismark Model, or what have you) they would like to have.
Socialized health care: This is like the National Health Insurance program in the United Kingdom. It is government owned and run and paid for through taxes. The hospitals are run and and owned by the government and the doctors are government employees. Everyone in the country is covered and there are almost zero out of pocket costs for people.
Private health care: This just means that doctors and hospitals are fun by individuals or organizations. For example, in Japan 80% of the system is privately run, the doctor in the episode owned and ran his own hospital. Most of the system in other countries and the U.S. is privately run.
Non-profit health care: This system tries to make enough money to cover all costs (for example, maintain buildings, pay staff and doctor wages, pay for medical equipment and anything necessary to treat people). This system does not try to make a profit and people are not trying to make themselves rich, but like Dr. Badat in the U.K. the doctor’s can still be paid well.
For profit health care: This system works like a business and tries to make as much money as possible and usually this happens through increased costs of medicine (hospital could charge you $40 for a Tylenol pill), cost of care, insurance premiums, and so on, and often, this means limiting or denying patients the care they need (like not approving medical procedures or denying access to a specialist). The goal of this system is to make as much profit/money as possible.
Intro paragraph 1: Opening—begin a general discussion that leads to the topic, go into some background and give history on your topic, define necessary words (for example, for profit health care, ACA, universal health care, socialized health care, whatever is relevant and needed), begin answering some of the journalistic questionsand make sure to introduce the problem, 2 of your sources for the essay. Give the text title (formatted correctly), author’s full name, and main idea in one sentence; then, follow up with a summary of the source that helps build your background and define your terms. Each summary should be several sentences long.
Intro paragraph 2: Continue the background information, define any additional necessary terms, introduce 2 of your other sources that are necessary for building context and reader information. Make sure that you give the text title (formatted correctly), author’s full name, and main idea in one sentence; then, follow up with a summary of the source that helps build your background and define your terms. Summaries should be several sentences long. Discuss the opposing side on the topic and the main point of disagreement between the two sides. Establish that there is some point of common ground between the opposing sides.End this paragraph with your general umbrella thesis (1 to 2 sentences long).
NOTE: The sources you are using and introducing in your intro paragraphs will not need to be introduced in your body paragraphs. However, any source NOT introduced and summarized in your intro paragraphs will need to be introduced in the body paragraphs the first time you bring them up BEFORE you quote from them for the first time. Each source only needs a full introduction (title of essay, author’s full name, and main idea) one time in your essay. Do NOT keep giving the full source information in the body paragraphs since it disrupts the flow of your ideas, and we have a works cited page to look at if we need the source information.
FIVE Body Paragraphs:
Since this will be more of a formal argument that brings in both sides of an argument, your paragraphs will look a bit different from before. We are still following the basic elements of MEAL or TEAC (which means you still provide a topic sentence, evidence, analysis and explanation, and a conclusion/link at the end of each paragraph), but you are adding opposing/counterarguments.
Begin with a clear Topic Sentence. Each paragraph Topic Sentence for every should address these questions: What change (have a specific topic) do you want to see in the U.S. healthcare system? Why should the U.S. apply the change you want/What is the benefit (your argument on the topic)? This ONE sentence should be a reason in support of the thesis.
Topic: (What are you talking about in the paragraph? What is the subtopic?)
Argument: (Based on the subtopic, give a general reason for what you want to prove or argue for in your essay?)
Reasoning: (Why? Why should we do what you want? Who or what will be affected)
Provide clear transitions/links between ideas in and between paragraphs.
Provide the opposing/counterargument on that topic.
Refute/argue against the opposing argument
Conclude each paragraph
For example, here is a skeleton of what a paragraph could look like, but note it is NOT a fully developed paragraph:
Controlling healthcare prices through a fixed price list will be better for the U.S. because it will lower prices and allow more people to access affordable health care. Controlling health care prices may seem like the wrong thing to do in a free market capitalist society. In fact, those who are against this dislike the idea of the government being in charge or regulating health care. They believe…. (give reasons, or evidence/quote if you have it, and explain opposing side on this topic). However, we can look at Germany as an example of how lowering prices does not have to mean government intervention and how it can work. Karl Lauterback, a health expert and politician, explains that “medical providers and sickness funds negotiate standard prices” so the prices stay affordable and no one goes bankrupt trying to pay for health care (“Sick” 30:33-30:44). (Analyze, break down quote and explain) …. (Conclude paragraph by going back to main topic and reason for your argument.) Having uniform, low-cost, and fair pricing for healthcare means that people can expect the same services no matter where they go for care. Fixed pricing will give people more of a choice and control over their healthcare, and the economical prices mean more people can afford to see the doctor and stay healthy.
This sense of control over one’s health carecan extend to eliminating gatekeepers so that people are allowed to see specialists faster, so they…. (The topic sentence should be finished and new paragraph following pattern above started)
Conclusion:
Go back to your opening, sum up the counterarguments/opposing views, reference your thesis (do NOT cut and paste), reference some important ideas or points from essay (do not list every topic or topic sentence from essay), state why you are interested in solving the problem, state why a solution to the issue is needed, and give warning for what can happen if the issue is not fixed. You may want to end with what you would like to see happen in the future.
FINAL NOTES:
Make sure to integrate and support the quotations by:
supplying an informative introduction before each quotation or integrating quotes appropriately
providing analysis, explanation/follow-up commentary after the quotation which explains the relevance of the quotation to your main thesis
and, most importantly, properly cite the original source of the quotation (identify author’s last name and page number)–see LSHrules. If you are citing the episode of Frontline or a documentary (credible film), include the title (or a shortened version of it) and the time range. For example, (“Sick” 30:33-30:44).
Each paragraph should have TWO PIECES OF EVIDENCE: at least ONE quote and a paraphrase cited correctly or TWO quotes, and NO more than three short quotes per paragraph.
The Works Cited page at the end of your essay BEFORE your Outline should have an entry for each and ALL sources used and referenced in your essay.
WRITE your OUTLINE BEFORE you start your essay to ensure that your essay is focused and does not wander off track. An outline helps to organize what each paragraph will be about and what evidence you want to include as support. An outline helps to keep your essay focused and ensures you are answering the prompt. It serves as a map for your essay.
Note: Essays that do not have 4 academic research sources (not what I provided but that you found yourself) or that do not include URL’s for sources that allow me to see the detailed record and read the article in our databases will NOT be graded and will be an automatic F. Possible texts in addition to YOUR FOUR RESEARCH TEXTS (make sure to get the “detailed record” for the citation information needed for the works cited page. If you use any of the following texts I have provided (these are optional), they will be in addition to YOUR RESEARCH and will NOT count as part of your research:
Frontline’s “Sick Around the World”
“Health Care Reform in the United States: Past, Present, and Future Challenges” by Steven J. Stack
“The Case for Single Price Health Care” by Paul S. Hewitt and Phillip Longman.
Below is a video review of the “Sick Around the World” transcript and website: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundtheworld
