Really, it’s Sick-care

For all the talk of scientific and medical innovation coming from the United States… most people around the world use another word to describe its healthcare system: broken.

If you don’t know what I’m referring to, then congratulations. You’re either super healthy or wealthy. Or happily ignorant in a different country. Because even the majority of those well-off in economic powerhouse states still know how bad it is for others.

You’re probably thinking about how you hear of our “top notch” care and how every organization is doing so much to “increase access.” Yes, one can receive the best healthcare in the world here… for the biggest price tag in the world.

And in terms of access, we all technically have it. Just like you can have access to that ginormous mansion high up in the hills. Right? In theory yes, but in practice there’s absolutely no way.

They hide the egregious prices behind insurance, grants, and “discount programs.”For instance, the cash price of an ambulance ride alone can be half the median yearly income. Not to mention your hospital room might as well have a old-fashioned cab meter on it. Tick, tick, ticking dollars away.

Some will say it’s worth it for prescriptions as we have the tightest regulations on medicine. First of all, that’s not true in comparison to about half of Europe. And even if so, is that worth literal hundreds more?

Forget hundreds of dollars. Some meds are hundreds of TIMES more than they cost just over the border in Canada.

And if you think Canada is some desolate wasteland of medical standards, I have a well-placed bridge to sell you!

You may not have to face the cash prices head on, but you know what it takes to get a claim approved. If you’re lucky.

But we have to pay monthly for that privilege. You’d think that the insurance premium (which should really be called a mediocre) is there to then cover most of the costs incurred. But no, not before you hit a magic number. There’s a deductible (which should really be called deduct-the-bucks-ible) on top of it all.

So, we pay an arm and a leg… but it’s for better health outcomes, right? Well, there goes another bridge! Not only do we lack better outcomes, but in many metrics were falling behind. An abysmal 40% don’t have a primary care doctor, thanks to all this.

Do you remember that the highest percentage of our people (compared to a nation’s general population) died during the Pandemic? Bar none.

In general, life expectancy is decreasing and childhood mortality is increasing. And thanks to related anti-science campaigns, there’s a disease that was a footnote in history literally brought back to life! Hopefully not more to come.

So our healthcare system (which should really be called sick-care) is in crisis. Funding cuts will only make it worse, and incremental changes… well we’ve tried that for over 15 years now.

Granted every modicum of progress has been aggressively challenged. But did we really not see that coming when something new was finally in place?

We can’t go back in time to be more prepared then, but we can be aware now. No matter what the solution could be… we all need to be aware, and stop digging our own graves.