I talked with a friend today who was depressed and desperate. He had come from his Doctor's office with prescriptions that would cost him $1500 per month, more than his monthly income. He is looking for information about herbal remedies to substitute for pharmaceuticals, as a cost saving move. I counseled him that might be ill-advised, considering the seriousness of his ailments.
U.S. government figures show that medical care costs have spiked since 2000, with total spending on prescriptions nearly doubling.
The quote above is from AlterNet, a story by Holly Dressell, Yes! Magazine contrasting our health care system with that of Canada. She makes a good case for universal publicly funded health care.
As I veg in front of the TV for awhile, seems most of the commercials are touting some drug or other, followed by ads from law firms soliciting clients for class-action suits against drug companies.
Medical treatment gone awry (iatrogenic) is now one of the leading causes of death.
in 1995, a report in JAMA said that:
"Over a million patients are injured in U.S. hospitals each year, and approximately 280,000 die annually as a result of these injuries. Therefore, the iatrogenic death rate dwarfs the annual automobile accident mortality rate of 45,000 and accounts for more deaths than all other accidents combined." quote from ourcivilization.com
This is another damn sorry state of affairs, all fueled by the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and insurance companies; then neatly wrapped up in ribbons and bows and delivered to the U.S. citizens by the providers of health care.
A bumper sticker caught my eye the other day that said:
If You're Not Outraged, You're Not Paying Attention
I'll leave you with that thought.
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