health care

noun

variants or healthcare

ˈhelth-ˌker 

 also  ˈheltth-

1

: efforts made to maintain, restore, or promote someone's physical, mental, or emotional well-being especially when performed by trained and licensed professionals

affordable health care

single-payer/universal health care

Health care is about keeping people healthy or fixing them up when they get sick.

—Ezekiel J. Emanuel

… has invested more than $500 million to improve access to quality healthcare in rural America …

—Bemidji Pioneer (online)

… the wearable [device] market is empowering people to take charge of their own healthcare.

—Rebecca Bellan

—sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun

health-care costs

Residents receive their meals, assistance with medications, … limited health-care services, supervision and companionship.

—Jere Daniel

2

: the people and organizations that provide health care

jobs in health care

The charges speak to some of the problems that face healthcare …

—Dave Newbart

—sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun

health-care workers

the health-care system/industry

Examples of health care in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Letting debt pile up due to often unplanned health care needs is a problem shared by many, forcing some to take on extra work, relinquish homes and ration food and other basic necessities, a KFF Health News-NPR investigation found. —Kate Gibson, CBS News, 11 June 2024

The California proposals, many of which have gained broad support, include rules to prevent A.I. tools from discriminating in housing and health care services. —Cecilia Kang, New York Times, 10 June 2024

At the center, residents can apply for food benefit programs, health insurance and financial aid through the OC Social Services Agency, or find health care resources through CalOptima Health or the OC Health Care Agency. —Destiny Torres, Orange County Register, 10 June 2024

Both Smith and Hicks have campaigned on securing reproductive rights, affordable health care and protecting the environment. —Mark Wasson, Twin Cities, 8 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

health care

noun

variants or healthcare

1

: efforts to maintain, restore, or promote someone's physical, mental, or emotional well-being especially when performed by trained and licensed professionals (as in medicine, dentistry, clinical psychology, and public health)

American health care is at a crossroads. Rapidly advancing forms of technology are dramatically improving lives. Simultaneously, U.S. citizens face enormous inefficiencies, escalating costs, uneven quality, disparities in health care, and rising numbers of uninsured people.

—William H. Frist, The New England Journal of Medicine

Several reviews … reflect that telemedicine can substantially improve the quality of healthcare even under COVID-19 restrictions and measures.

—Elliot Mbunge et al., Sensors International

—sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun

health-care coverage

2

: the personnel and organizations that provide health care

In the attempt to prevent the spread of a viral infection to and from healthcare workers, the health community generally relies on the efficacy of personal protective equipment (PPE): gloves, masks, respirators, goggles, face shields, and gowns.

—Ivo Boskoski et al., Gastrointestinal Endoscopy

—sometimes hyphenated when used before another noun

health-care providers