‘WE CAN DO BETTER’
While many Americans believe we are
one of the top countries in quality of health care, the truth is we are not. We
are the second most costly in the entire world and rank a distant 37th
in quality. While it may not shock you to learn that America is not the top
country where health care is concerned, the fact that we do not even rate in
the top 10 should give every American reason to rethink the current system.
The United States is unquestionably
a leader in technology. One would think that since we rank number two in the
amount of money spent, and have all this wonderful technology available to us
that our health care system would be second to none. So where are the
discrepancies and why do these two figures, the amount spent (second highest)
and the quality (37th) more closely match?
Improvements are needed and are
achievable. Recent studies prove that since the US falls far short of universal
health coverage the uninsured, now 47+ million and another 61 million
underinsured will forego preventative and primary care, undermine health
outcomes and raising the end cost of care. For example, if everyone with
diabetes and high blood pressure had their conditions closely monitored and
under control 1-2 billion health care dollars would be save and an estimated
20,000 to 40,000 lives could be saved each year.
Those that are not in favor of
change or a single payer system point there finger at our neighbors to the
north and claim the Canadian healthcare delivery system is more broken than our
own. As America comes to grips with the reality that changes are desperately
needed, it might prove useful to first debunk some myths about the Canadian
system.
Myth: Taxes in Canada are
extremely high, mostly because of national health care. Overall, Canada’s taxes are slightly higher than those in the U.S.
However, Canadians are afforded many benefits for their tax dollars, beyond
health care ( tax credits, family allowance, cheaper higher education), so the
end result is a wash. The average after-tax income of Canadian workers is equal
to about 82 percent of their gross pay. In the U.S., that average is 81.9
percent.
Myth: Canada’s health care
system is a cumbersome bureaucracy. The
U.S. spends more than 31 percent of it’s health care dollars on paperwork,
overhead, CEO salaries and profits. The provincial single-payer system in
Canada operates with just a 1 percent overhead.
Myth: The Canadian system is
significantly more expensive than that of the U.S. Ten percent of Canada’s GDP is spent on health care for 100 percent
of the population. The U.S. spends 17 percent of its GDP but 15 percent of its
population. In essence, the U.S. system is considerably more expensive than
Canada’s.
Myth: Canada’s
government decides who gets health care and when. While HMOs and other
private medical insurers in the U.S. do indeed make such decisions, the only
people in Canada making those decisions are physicians. The government has
absolutely no say in who gets care or how they get it, decisions are left
entirely up to doctors, as they should be.
Speaking personally and as a health professional, I’m tired
of the current system, the waste, the inequalities, and seeing Americans
victimized by poor healthcare or no health care. It’s time
for change, till next time, Rebecca