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A Recent report from the National Academy of Sciences found that for overall health the U.S. ranks last among 16 "peer" countries in terms of overall health and life expectancy.
Countries compared were Japan, Switzerland, Australia, Italy, France, Spain, Canada, Sweden, Austria, Norway, Netherlands, Germany, Finland, United Kingdom, Portugal, Denmark,
The 400 page report explores reasons for this including include the 50 million Americans without health insurance, fewer doctors per capita, less access to primary care and fragmented management of complex chronic diseases.
It also notes that Americans eat more than any other country on earth, an average of 4000 calories a day.
It's mainly behavior is my guess. Food, exercise, alchohol, drugs. Link also mentions guns and sex (HIV). I look for all these kinds of behavior to be increasingly regulated in an effort to control public health care costs, thus freeing up more money for bureaucratic junkets to Honolulu.
But the new report places more stress on nonmedical shortcomings.
Many people might be surprised to learn, for instance, that for more than half the males who die before age 50, the cause of death has nothing to do with disease — and is therefore not amenable to reduction through medical care.
If you're going to lump everything together what does that really have to do with health care?
These reports become very problematic. The Infant mortality rates often are used as scapegoat but you have a couple of issues. For example the US is leader in extremely premature births and many of those babies are very sick, France and some other countries only count babies of certain weight while every baby born here is counted. Blacks have an unusually high rate of infant mortality here in the US and that doesn't just apply to poor blacks but the entire black population.
It all in the details in how these reports are compiled.
If you're going to lump everything together what does that really have to do with health care?
These reports become very problematic. The Infant mortality rates often are used as scapegoat but you have a couple of issues. For example the US is leader in extremely premature births and many of those babies are very sick, France and some other countries only count babies of certain weight while every baby born here is counted. Blacks have an unusually high rate of infant mortality here in the US and that doesn't just apply to poor blacks but the entire black population.
It all in the details in how these reports are compiled.
Health care is not the same as health. This report, as far as I can tell, is about the status of health overall for Americans, in terms of injury, illness, mortality.
The high infant and maternal mortality rates in the U.S. have been a long-standing problem, and as you note many factors underlie it. But one factor is prenatal care, or lack of it, and there again, health care comes into play because women who don't have health insurance may delay prenatal care. The other is nutrition. People like to think that hunger is not an issue in the U.S. but it is. Also the U.S. has the absolute worst maternity leave policies in the developed world, and I can't help but think that has an impact on maternal and baby health.
It's mainly behavior is my guess. Food, exercise, alchohol, drugs. Link also mentions guns and sex (HIV). I look for all these kinds of behavior to be increasingly regulated in an effort to control public health care costs, thus freeing up more money for bureaucratic junkets to Honolulu.
One article I read suggested that some of the reasons underlying American's poor health is because America has a culture of resisting regulation and there is that spirit of "no one can tell me what to do". When it comes to one's health, that attitude is not necessarily going to lead to a healthier lifestyle.
But one factor is prenatal care, or lack of it, and there again, health care comes into play because women who don't have health insurance may delay prenatal care.
Yes, that's another one. My Mother was OB nurse and played a very large part in birthing classes going back to the 70's when they started them. One complaint she often had was the first time many of these women would see a doctor or have any contact with medical professionals was when they showed up at the hospital to give birth despite the fact there was many services available to them. You wouldn't believe some of the stories I've heard.
One article I read suggested that some of the reasons underlying American's poor health is because America has a culture of resisting regulation..........
So what would you suggest, regulate the huge chainsaw I have out in the garage?
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