U.S. spends most but gets mediocre health care

[deadparrot]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States spends far more on health care than any other country but gets only mediocre care in return for its investment, according to a report released on Wednesday.

The U.S. national average score on 37 separate measures of health care falls far short when compared either to a few centers of excellence within the country, or to other countries, the report from the Commonwealth Fund found.

"Overall, you will see ... that the United States scores poorly -- an overall score of 66 (out of 100)," Cathy Schoen, senior vice president for research and evaluation at non-profit health-care research foundation, told a news conference.

"We have lives at stake both in terms of mortality statistics but also in terms of quality of life."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/usa_dc

[ninkasi]

1. A lot of the money

that goes into health care really goes, instead, to the corporate pockets of HMOs and most of that money goes to the ultra wealthy CEOs of those companies. It only stands to reason that the more layers between patients and doctors, or hospitals. That's why there should be universal health care. It could be run like Medicare did when it was first implemented. Under Republican rule, Medicare has decreased the amounts paid to doctors, which in turn makes many of them stop taking any new Medicare patients.

When health care dollars go to the overpaid executives, it means that fewer dollars are spent on helping the patient. The neocons want to privatize everything, or keep it that way, when it costs more, not less than it was before the government was involved. With Bushco, it's all about money, power, and shifting the tax burden from the rich to the poor and middle classes.

[orwell]

2. Another myth shattered...

...I'm sure it will run on page one in newspapers across the country.

I'm sure it will be the lead story on fox, msnbc, cnn, the major networks, as it speaks to the welfare of every citizen of the US.

I'm sure...

[pinerow]

3. You forgot the "sarcasm" thingy...

nt

[NotGivingUp]

4. actually i was reading something similar in the paper this

morning! can't remember exactly but we ranked down at the bottom for infant mortality and something else.

[leftchick]

11. "The Best Healthcare In The World is in The US"!

If you are a member of Congress or filthy fucking rich or both it is. :(

[Pavulon]

5. UK and New Zealand

trail the us. I'll stick with medicine here. J hopkins, duke, mayo, cedars all places I'd rather be if ill than anywhere else.

66 out of 100 is not a placement but a score..

[gratuitous]

7. If you can afford the Mayo Clinic

Yes, the quality of care there or at Johns Hopkins is very good. Unfortunately, should a medical emergency befall someone of lesser financial means and they don't happen to be within bleeding distance of Rochester, Minnesota or Baltimore, Maryland, they could very well be out of luck no matter how much money they have.

Strangely enough, I don't think quality health care is very high on the list of things that Bill Gates, the Walton family of Wal-Mart fame, or any of the other ultrarich worry too much about. No matter where they travel in the U.S. or the world.

But somehow, for all the money we spend as a whole, all we can do is score a D-minus? There's got to be a better way to get value for our health dollars.

[FlaGranny]

14. Ha, ha, ha, ha!

I have as much chance of going to one of those places as I have of winning the lottery. You made a BIIGGG "funny."

[TygrBright]

6. um, and this is "news" to..... who? n/t

[Bandit]

8. 66 out of a hundred, if that was a test we would get an F

"USA USA USA" "We don't Care" We Don't Care" "We Don't Care"

[NorthernSpy]

10. actually, a straight D under most grading systems...

Not quite an F. But Lord, it's not good.


:scared:

[Bandit]

18. When I went to school anything under 70% was failing

I guess things have changed. :shrug:

[NorthernSpy]

9. how dare they say something bad about our Market-based healthcare system?

Market-based things are ALWAYS better, even if they're empirically worse.

Our healthcare system is officially the best in the world, even it's not really. Just like our disaster-response system, or our privately-owned electricity distribution system. No one else does any of these things better, even if they plainly ARE doing these things better. Competition among private entities always results in the best possible deal for the public, in spite of all the situations in which that's just not true. We have nothing to learn from anybody.


/moment of fanatical Market worship

[dolo amber]

12. ...

:thumbsup:

[Mandate My Ass]

16. We're number one....

even if we're actually 66th out of 100, and that's the fact, Jack. People from other countries are lining up to die in the good old U.S. of A. Our health system is killing them over here so we don't have to kill them over there.

I love gallows humor.

[Anakin Skywalker]

13. Doesn't Suprise Me One Bit, Holmes!

[lovuian]

15. Mediocre try the worse care in the world

:grr:

[Earth_First]

17. Our healthcare system is SO fantastic...

That the minimal insurance that I am offered through work comes with a $3,000 deductable, yes you read that correctly: $3,000.

It's "healthcare insurance" alright... :sarcasm:

In case you missed it the first time: :sarcasm: