Americans have a shorter life expectancy than people in other industrialized nations, and some researchers chalk that up to inadequate preventive health care.
The nonpartisan Commonwealth Fund points out that the United States has a higher rate of premature deaths caused by treatable illnesses than other industrial countries. Treatable illnesses include diabetes, stroke, influenza, ulcers, pneumonia and epilepsy.
"These are conditions where early care and the right care should be able to prevent an early death," Commonwealth Fund executive Cathy Schoen told The Washington Post. "We shouldn't see people dying of diabetes before age 50."
As the Post recently reported, the fund found that in 1999 the United States ranked 15th in preventable deaths out of 19 industrialized countries. In 2003 the nation fell to 19th, even though health care spending continued to rise.
Indeed, the United States spends more than $2 trillion a year for health care. Per capita the nation spends more than double the average of other industrialized nations, according to the international Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
The United States could prevent up to 100,000 deaths with better primary care, according to the Commonwealth Fund. That would seem to be a problem that has an answer in light of the fact that, as of 2005, Americans were only receiving half of the health screenings and checkups recommended by doctors.
One of the key stumbling blocks is access to a doctor. An estimated 80 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured, meaning they don't see a doctor regularly.
Mark Pearson, health director of OECD, put it this way: "The U.S. doesn't take primary care very seriously."
This is a stunning indictment of the current health care system and yet more evidence of the very clear need to overhaul it. Congress should move quickly to expand Americans' access to health care insurance.