I read a great article by David Goldhill in The Atlantic on American health care. The following figures are taken from his article.
The health care reform bill is a joke. Remember the old adage, “Money is honey, but health is wealth?” I don’t remember the term health care in that sentence. According to the latest figures, the federal government spends eight times as much on health care as education, 12 times what it spends on food aid to children and families, 30 times what it spends on law enforcement, 78 times what it spends on land management and conservation, 87 times the spending on water supply, and 830 times what it spends on energy conservation! Education, which I believe is the future, public safety, infrastructure, the environment, are all being swallowed up by the health care monster.
The health care reform bill is projected to cost an additional $100 billion per year. Is this really going to make us healthier? How about giving American workers six weeks of vacation/year? That would total ~ $50 billion. I think that would do wonders for peoples health. How about $25 billion for better nutrition, or $10 billion for cleaner air and water. Or $10 billion for recreation and $5 billion for parks? Wouldn’t that $100 billion be better spent that way? I think it would definitely make people healthier. Health care just keeps gobbling up all of our resources. I think what the people in charge need to do is to throw out what they have in mind, pull out a clean sheet of paper, and start over. Why not Medicare for all, and if you want to purchase supplemental, go for it.
Try and stay well-we need to, John R Blilie, M.S.