BCT Editorial – 8/28/07

This page was last updated on September 4, 2007.

From bad to worse; Editorial; Beaver County Times; August 28, 2007.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“The health-care picture in the United States is going from bleak to bleaker, not just in terms of dollars and cents but in overall health, too.

“Even though the United States is the wealthiest nation in the world and spends a higher percentage of its gross domestic product on health care than any other country, citizens of 41 other nations have longer life expectancies.

“Americans are living longer, but The Associated Press reported the United States has been slipping for decades as other countries improve health care, nutrition and lifestyles. The main reasons cited for the U.S. lag are adult obesity, racial disparities and infant death rates.

“Forty countries have lower infant morality [sic] rates, with the U.S. rate of 6.8 deaths for every 1,000 live births. For black Americans, the rate was 13.7 deaths.

“Black Americans also die at an earlier age. Black Americans have a life expectancy of 73.3 years, five years shorter than white Americans.

“One-third of all American adults are obese, and two-thirds are overweight, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. This has a direct impact on heart disease, diabetes and blood pressure. These diseases take a toll on the human body and add to the overall cost of health care.

“The future doesn’t look any better.

“According to a recent study reported by the AP, roughly 2 million American children have high blood pressure, with three-fourths of them not knowing that they have it. One factor driving high blood pressure is childhood obesity, which is reaching epidemic proportions.

“The financial costs of America’s failed health-care system are going to start killing us, as well.

“The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reported last week that ‘the budget outlook for the long term remains daunting’ because of steadily growing health-care costs, especially in regard to Medicare and Medicaid.

“Those programs now consume 4.6 percent of the U.S. economy. That figure will rise to 5.9 percent by 2017 under current projections. Unless federal policies change, that percentage will continue to grow.

“It’s not any better on the private side. Americans and businesses are seeing health-care costs eat up bigger chunks of their budgets, too.

“What is to be done?

“Individuals can take control of their lives. They can eat less and exercise more. Insurers and employers can do more by offering discounts to people who undertake this transformation.

“However, it’s unlikely that present and future presidents and Congresses are going to tackle the problem. Unless Americans and the business community force them into action, they would rather postpone the day of reckoning than undertake the massive reforms that are needed to address the problems plaguing health care in America.

“If you think it’s bad now, just wait.”

[RWC] Other than blaming individuals for being fat and not exercising, have you noticed editorials never address other possible reasons for higher-than-desired healthcare prices? For future reference, it appears editorial authors believe “cost” and “price” are synonyms; they are not.

Please go to this link for my position on the healthcare issue.