I listened to an article on NPR the other day that was talking about life expectancy. It got me thinking, so I went rummaging about for other statistics. From results of various studies, the US is:
-Ranked last compared to Britain, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand)
-37th-47th in life expectancy
-43rd in child mortality
-Highest rate of death from conditions that could have been treated/prevented
-Below average in adult asthma care (5th highest asthma mortality)
-Ranks last or next to last in quality, access, efficiency, equity, and healthy lives
-15% of the US has no health insurance (any idea how devastating that can be? What you pay with insurance isn’t 15%-20%, it’s 15%-20% of an already discounted rate)
-Fewer doctors as a % of the population of industrialized countries
-1st in health care costs (2-3 times other industrialized countries)
-1st in health care spending of industrialized countries as % of GDP (50% or more)
About the only bright spot is among the highest survival rates for cancer.
Britain (Nationalized) – ranked 1st in quality
Netherlands (Nationalized) – ranked 1st overall
Let’s see — we spent more in about every way you can measure it. We have about the worst care in about every way you can measure it. Nationalized health care is providing better outcomes, for less $. The US is falling behind. Again.