Americans unhealthier than English
I have argued for years with others about our healthcare system. I try to convince them that we need national healthcare, which will provide universal coverage. The counterargument is often that that do not want to pay high taxes or suffer because of poor services. I always respond that we spend far more per capita on healthcare than anyone else, yet we have a shorter life expectancy, higher infant mortality and trail developed nations in almost every major health index.
I have actually had some people counter that those statistics are misleading because we are a diverse nation and our minorities skew the results. I guess for the purpose of American statistics only white people should count. In this particular study, they used only non-hispanic whites from the US and England, and white Americans still fell way behind their English counterparts.
So why aren't we debating a national healthcare service? Why worry about high taxes? We're already paying too much for poor results. Here are some excerpts from the article.
Those dismal results are despite the fact that U.S. health care spending is double what England spends on each of its citizens.
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The study, based on government statistics in both countries, adds context to the already-known fact that the United States spends more on health care than any other industrialized nation, yet trails in rankings of life expectancy.
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Health experts have known the U.S. population is less healthy than that of other industrialized nations, according to several important measurements, including life expectancy. The U.S. ranks behind about two dozen other countries, according to the World Health Organization.
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Some have believed the United States has lagged because it is more ethnically diverse, said Suzman, who heads the National Institute on Aging's Behavioral and Social Research Program. "Minority health in general is worse than white health," he said.
But the new study showed that when minorities are removed from the equation, and adjustments are made to control for education and income, white people in England are still healthier than white people in the United States.
Link
I have actually had some people counter that those statistics are misleading because we are a diverse nation and our minorities skew the results. I guess for the purpose of American statistics only white people should count. In this particular study, they used only non-hispanic whites from the US and England, and white Americans still fell way behind their English counterparts.
So why aren't we debating a national healthcare service? Why worry about high taxes? We're already paying too much for poor results. Here are some excerpts from the article.
Those dismal results are despite the fact that U.S. health care spending is double what England spends on each of its citizens.
<...>
The study, based on government statistics in both countries, adds context to the already-known fact that the United States spends more on health care than any other industrialized nation, yet trails in rankings of life expectancy.
<...>
Health experts have known the U.S. population is less healthy than that of other industrialized nations, according to several important measurements, including life expectancy. The U.S. ranks behind about two dozen other countries, according to the World Health Organization.
<...>
Some have believed the United States has lagged because it is more ethnically diverse, said Suzman, who heads the National Institute on Aging's Behavioral and Social Research Program. "Minority health in general is worse than white health," he said.
But the new study showed that when minorities are removed from the equation, and adjustments are made to control for education and income, white people in England are still healthier than white people in the United States.
Link
posted by torporindy at 5/03/2006
7 Comments:
Another reason to drink Guinness over Budweiser.
Universal Healthcare - the Canadian religion, and a good one too. I think that Cuba still has a lower infant mortality rate than the US.
Ann Coulter does not agree with you.
I do.
Our healthcare system is really messy.
It's a mess, plus as someone pointed out elsewhere, we Americans consume too much high fructose corn syrup
Besides danger to the environment, high fructose corn syrup is Bill Maher's public enemy number one. :)
That reminds me -- I forgot to look for kosher Coke during Passover. Oy vey.
Yes, I just read about Kosher coke. I think I am going to start buying coca cola in mexican grocery stores. As a bonus, it comes in a bottle.
Two words: British dentistry.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/rockwell/british-dentistry.html
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