How is it that America spends twice as much as Canada, per capita, on health care, but lags over 3 years...?

Question

...behind Canada in average life-expectancy? The USA is also 42nd (in life expectancy) world-wide, behind Japan, most of Europe, Jordan, Guam and the Cayman Islands, ...amongst others... and appears to be falling even further behind with the passage of time.

What does that say about the American health care system?

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/08/13/life.expectancy.ap/index.html

Tom, obesity and bad diet is as big a problem in Canada, and Canadians live considerably longer than Americans.

Correction: there is some difference, but in contrast to Tommy's figures, it's 23% vs 30% in the U.S.

"While 23% of Canadian adults were obese in 2004, the rate was nearly 30% south of the border."

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/050706/d050706a.htm

Answer 1

What it says is that despite great possible care we don't take care of anybody without insurance, and when those people die in their 50's it drives the average way down. Higher infant mortality then the rest of the industrial world doesn't hurt either.

Again, it's that Free market ****. If you cna't afford it, you don't live. Am I the only one who sees something wrong with that?

Answer 2

"appears to be falling even further behind with the passage of time."

First of all, the average life span of someone in our country continues to increase as it has been for many decades. The Census Bureau has been increasing the number of countries included in their survey which is part of the reason for the US falling to 42nd in life expectancy and other countries are making great gains in their health systems and therefore, are seeing gains in the average life span.

We tend to spend twice as much as Canada, per capital for several reasons:
- lawyers run amuck, doctors are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars each year on liability insurance which has a significant impact not only on the cost of care but also on the availability of care
- many significant breakthroughs in drugs and treatment options are developed in the US - there tends to be more innovation overall and US health care centers often have much better equipment and facilities than do health care centers in other countries
- I don't think you can draw any broad negative conclusions about our health care system from the statistics you cited
- You might be able to draw the conclusion that Americans are spending too much time in front of the TV or computer and not enough time walking, biking, or otherwise engaging in healthy activities.

Answer 3

It says nothing at all about our health care system because when people from countries that have a longer life expectancy move to the US, even as children, they still live as long as if they stayed where they were. The evidence is clear, WE are in charge of our life expectancy. It's the result of cultural tendency, diet and life style. We eat garbage and sit on our ***. It has nothing to do with the Health Care System.
We don't bother to take care of ourselves and then expect doctors to perform miracles when one of our parts can't take it anymore and shuts down. And when they can't perform the miracle we want the government to take over and make it free. It's ludicrous to think that's going to make us live any longer. We might live a little longer if they don't serve corn syrup on the lines we will be waiting on for treatment.

Answer 4

Canada does NOT have the same obesity rate as the U.S., only the same upward trend. Our obesity rate is more than double Canada's, and the highest obesity rate in the industrialized world. Lack of governmental bureaucracy controlled health care has no bearing on the disparity between our national caloric intake and average daily energy expenditure.

Answer 5

Our lifestyle sucks. We eat badly, exercise little, and believe the latest diet fad or vaccine scare or hoax email while ignoring the good advice our doctors give us. And then we demand pills from the doctor to cure our mainly imaginary illness that wouldn't have happened in the first place if we had just ate right, exercised, and followed his or her advice. Then we complain that the doctor is just trying to get rich by selling us pills we don't really need, even though we in fact demanded them in the first place.

They say you get the government you deserve. I think you also get the health care system you deserve.

Answer 6

Are you kidding? We eat better than you and excercise more than you. Well we may not really eat better than you but with the taxes I can barely feed my family so I am sure we consume fewer calories than you.

Bottom line spend whatever you want but no one in my extended family has eaten at McDonalds, Burger King or any of your other heart attack factories in more than 10 years. That's the problem.

PS: Don't envy our healthcare. It's horrible waits and the answer is always a pill. Remember, a large part of our lower prescription prices is that we consume almost twice as many pills per person than you do. So just because I get my Trazodone at 1/3 of your price doesn't justify the doctor giving me double the AMA suggested maximum dosage.

Answer 7

It sucks! Big time! Half decent health plan cost 12k a year. It is 1/3 of average salary. Is it worth it? No!

Sometimes I think Yankees are on drugs!

Answer 8

It's because our healthcare is able to profit as much as they wish. Apparently, although, I don't see why it should beable to do that. It should operate like a not for profit entity. Also, I think because they fork out billions of dollars a year in lawsuits. Great idea huh, voluntarily going to get help by another human then suing the life out of them when they make a mistake. Mistakes suck but it shouldn't cost someone their career I think. Unless it's a habit.

Answer 9

You could blame it on health care... you could also blame it on people eating McDonald's everyday that die at the age of 40 because of a heart attack as well.
Edit: I stand corrected. Although I still hold this belief to some degree =)

Answer 10

The reason why health care is cheaper in Canada is because everyone has access to PREVENTATIVE medicine (check ups, vaccines, etc....). A tumor detected in it's infancy is a lot cheaper to treat than widespread cancer.