U.S. health care is tops - in costs | Philadelphia Inquirer | 03/21/2010

U.S. health care is tops - in costs | Philadelphia Inquirer | 03/21/2010

"U.S. health care is tops - in costs
The myth that it's the best in the world is hard to overcome. It needs fixing eventually.

One of the sturdiest cliches of American political life is this: The United States offers the best health care in the world!

Right-wing talkmeisters such as Rush Limbaugh routinely spout that dogma as fact. And even Americans who aren't dittoheads tend to believe it....

And what do we get for all the money we spend? We remain the only Western nation that does not provide universal health-care coverage to its citizens.

France and Germany, for example, spend about half as much, provide universal care, and reap better outcomes. Their citizens live longer, with proportionally fewer dead babies and children.

The same is true of the much-maligned Canadians. They, too, get better health outcomes for less money."