tiercel

I'm curious -- it's a claim I've heard often enough, here, in opinion pieces, out of the mouths of politicians, this claim that the US has "the best health care system in the world."

What is this claim based on?

No, really. I'm curious.

I did just a little digging in my curiosity, figuring that good health care might be at least somewhat correlated with life expectancy. Sure, there are other factors, but if you genuinely have the *best* health care in the world, you'd think that your people would have one of the highest life expectancies in the world.

So I went over directly to a US government website: The CIA World Factbook, specifically, their ranking of Life Expectancy at Birth of nations/world entities. Out of a total of 223 world entities, where does the US clock in?

#47.

Not *tremendously* impressive, I'd say. Yes, to be fair, some of the entities listed above the US are small island chains that are protectorates, have small populations, whatever, but when the US has a lower life expectancy than Bosnia and Herzegovina (#43), I'd say something is a little off. Not to mention Guam (#35) and Puerto Rico (#41!) do better, as do Jordan (#40), Cyprus (#46), most major European countries, plus Japan (#3), Singapore (#4), Hong Kong (#6), Canada (#7), Australia (#11), and Israel (#13).

Yeah, sure, fine, the health care system isn't *all* of life expectancy, but when the US is actually *lagging* behind Bosnia and Puerto Rico....

(Plus, hideous, evil, Communist, and heavily blockaded Cuba clocks in with a life expectancy of 77.27 years, compared to the US's 78.14 years. Are we supposed to be proud of edging out *Cuba*?)

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freckles

My opinion? It's based on technology and advancement. I would rank us at near the bottom for health and lifestyle choice which is coorelated with life expectancy but not related to health care.

In the wild, there is no healthcare. In the wild healthcare is 'Ow, I hurt my leg. I can't run. A lion eats me, and I'm dead.' Well, I'm not dead. I'm the lion. You're dead.

Feslin

We have a terrible lifestyle.

Frankly, it's amazing our life expectancy.

But I'm not going to claim our healthcare system is good. But that's due to the amount of government interference we've had already, and not the lack of such.

If you have someone on ignore because you don't like their opinions, do us all a favor and just leave, moron.

Feslin

Hmm, since I can't edit my post for whatever reason (I hate forums), I meant to say it's amazing our life expectancy is that high. But ok.

If you have someone on ignore because you don't like their opinions, do us all a favor and just leave, moron.

Leo

PR-2000-43/ WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION : ASSESSES THE WORLD'S HEALTH SYSTEMS

So as far as I can make out, the low ranking of the USA does not indicate that the actual health care available is deficient in any way. But what they seem to be saying is that, taken overall, the system is not satisfactory in comparison to 36 other developed countries, including most of Europe, the UK, etc.

Some corner of a foreign field ...

nuit

That is the most rediculous claim I have read. I lived in Australia for a number of years where much of the healthcare is free and provided by the govt. That is why the life expectancy is in 11th place. Its because you know if you get sick you will be taken care of and not thrown off your health insurance like you will be here.

Here if I am sick I suck it up because I can't afford s $50 trip to the doctors atm. There I'd go for free.

nuit

Thats also wrong. Food is just as bad in Australia as it is here in the US. Australia's obesity levels are similar to the US. Still Australia is in 11th place and the US is just a bit better than Cuba's. WOW! I am so impressed.

Akkaid

For one, American's low life expectancy has far more to do with McDonalds than our health care system. Two, $50 is a damn good price when it comes to your health. Way I read that is that a cell phone or dinner and a movie is more important to you than your health.

BTW, there is no such thing a free health care.

"I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write" - Voltair

Further evidence a Liberal will F#$K anything.

Leo

With respect Akkaid, I am sure you know what Nuit meant when he stated that health care was free in Australia. It is an universal health care system funded by taxation, with no up front cost at the point of care.

Ideology is fine, but when it comes to a sick person being too poor to afford treatment, its utility goes out the window. And, yes, leaving aside assumptions about cell phones, there are people in all our societies for whom $50 is a lot of money. I am one of those.

Some corner of a foreign field ...

tiercel

Have you seen Australian food? British food? I'm not so sure it is so much better, as a rule.

Unless you are part of the population for which dinner and a movie happens... oh... on your anniversary, if at all, and a cell phone is a luxury not a convenience.

Some folks are barely paying rent, food, and gas these days -- prices on just about everything is going up, and wages aren't (and haven't for some time). Sure, you might be able to put together the $50 if you *must* go to the doctor, but if you are feeling really lousy, you're going to wait almost until the point of incapacitation to make sure you aren't just going to get better on your own.

The US health care system might be pretty good for people with enough money to never worry about the expense of using it -- or for people with arbitrarily good insurance. But there are quite a few of us whose insurance doesn't cover much beyond total emergencies, and are hesitant to use health care facilities unless 100% absolutely necessary, due to the expense.

Saying that health care is pretty good, it's just general health, is like saying a car service center is pretty good because it can handle breakdowns, but doesn't know anything about changing oil or air filters. Preventative maintenance is as much a part of auto care/health care as fixing something that breaks -- and I'd submit that is at least a fair amount of the difference between US life expectancy and others.

If US health care doesn't have an "ounce of prevention" component -- and if uninsured/poorly insured people are afraid to do preventative/early doctor's visits, because they can barely afford to go -- then of course overall health will suffer. It's not just us sitting our big American butts on the sofa between a gallon of Budweiser and a bushel of Cheetos.