Universal Health Care blog #3

Universal Health Care blog #3

Prompt: How is it possible that the U.S. has the best Health Care system in the world, yet we are 23^rd in mortality rate?

            So why is it that the U.S. mortality rate is not in the top rankings if we have the best Health Care system in the world? Many people look at this statistic and they automatically think that the U.S. health care system may not be as good as it seems, but I believe there are some other factors that should be considered. First off, mortality rate/life expectancy cannot be determined by only one factory, such as our healthcare system. These rates must also depend on personal actions such as diets, exercise, smoking, and the choice to utilize the heath care system that the U.S. has given to us. The United States has one of the highest cigarette consumption rates and one of the highest obesity rates in the world. It is not possible to blame only the U.S. health care system for 22 countries being ahead of the U.S.

            Another reason I believe our ranking is so high is because it also counts all the individuals in America that are uninsured. Sally Pipes quotes, “In 2007, 45.7 million Americans were uninsured.” In her essay she talks about how these numbers are misleading due to the millions that choose to be uninsured, those who are uninsured but make over 75,000 a year, and those who aren’t even U.S. citizens. Whatever the reason, there are 45.7 million, which is 15% of the U.S. population, that are uninsured. Now some of these individuals could be paying out of pocket for Health Care, but certainly not all, or even close to all. This means that all these individuals are included in the morality rates that place us in the ranking, giving us 23^rd. People that do not have health care, whatever the reason, puts them at a greater risk of death due to no insurance or no health care.

            Another reason would be that our health care may be the best, but it is also the most expensive. Individuals travel to America to receive different treatments due how advanced U.S. technology is. People travel for MRI’s and medicines all the time, this doesn’t mean our health care system is perfect, or cheap. The people that travel for these treatments are not from the poor community; they have money and can afford this treatment and the travel. Many people in America can’t even afford the U.S. health care system. From our Universal Health Care book, Clark Newhall quotes, “More than 20,000 people die each year in America due to this famine because they cannot afford the price for-profit health insurance.” We may have the best health care insurance in the world, but if people cannot afford it, what is the point? We will never be in the top rankings with these statistics.

            If American citizens made better personal choices, could all have the opportunity to get insured, and the cost of health insurance was free… Our ranking would be much higher. People die because they cannot receive health care due to how expensive it is. I am on the side of health care being a right so maybe I am a little bias towards this side, but free health care would help Americas ranking. Sure there are many other factors involved, but the price of the American Health Care system kills 20,000 people a year and that is hard to ignore.