Re: US ranks worst in preventable deaths (gee, what a surprise)

[Guest guest]

--- " The fact that other countries are reducing these preventable

deaths more rapidly, yet spending far less, indicates that policy,

goals and efforts to improve health systems make a difference, "

Schoen added in a statement. ---

Very disturbing!

The way America does stuff is insane - our policy makers keep doing

the same thing over and over yet expect different improved results.

This report " should " be a huge wake-up call!

Just how can we make even one candidate accountable though? Here in

WA State we have a corrupt chief of schools and no one seems to be

able to get her out of office. She's a wolf in sheep's clothing and

has slyly gotten away with her crimes while abusing children in the

process. We are currently in a " reformed education revolution " here

demanding proper changes. I'm not optimistic children will win any

time soon though.

, I'd sure love to know just how to make the TSH Nazi's

accountable. I read the other day there are probably over 15 million

people in the US that are walking around with " undiagnosed " thyroid

disease. These numbers do Not include the already diagnosed and

under treated thyroiders.

That alone is " very disturbing " indeed! We need to thoroughly look

at what France, Japan and Australia are doing right.

Bj

>

> OK, a little sarcasm in the subject line there. I'm not going to get

> political here, but if SOMEONE in government doesn't start doing

> something SOON, then it's time for a revolution, frankly. It's far

> past embarrassing at this point--it's criminal. I am holding all

these

> candidates to their promises.

>

> http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080108/hl_nm/deaths_rankings_dc

>

>

>

> France best, U.S. worst in preventable death ranking

>

> By Will Dunham Tue Jan 8, 12:21 AM ET

>

> WASHINGTON (Reuters) - France, Japan and Australia rated best and

the

> United States worst in new rankings focusing on preventable deaths

due

> to treatable conditions in 19 leading industrialized nations,

> researchers said on Tuesday.

>

> If the U.S. health care system performed as well as those of those

top

> three countries, there would be 101,000 fewer deaths in the United

> States per year, according to researchers writing in the journal

> Health Affairs.

>

> Researchers Ellen Nolte and McKee of the London School of

> Hygiene and Tropical Medicine tracked deaths that they deemed could

> have been prevented by access to timely and effective health care,

and

> ranked nations on how they did.

>

> They called such deaths an important way to gauge the performance

of a

> country's health care system.

>

> Nolte said the large number of Americans who lack any type of health

> insurance -- about 47 million people in a country of about 300

> million, according to U.S. government estimates -- probably was a

key

> factor in the poor showing of the United States compared to other

> industrialized nations in the study.

>

> " I wouldn't say it (the last-place ranking) is a condemnation,

because

> I think health care in the U.S. is pretty good if you have access.

But

> if you don't, I think that's the main problem, isn't it? " Nolte said

> in a telephone interview.

>

> In establishing their rankings, the researchers considered deaths

> before age 75 from numerous causes, including heart disease, stroke,

> certain cancers, diabetes, certain bacterial infections and

> complications of common surgical procedures.

>

> Such deaths accounted for 23 percent of overall deaths in men and 32

> percent of deaths in women, the researchers said.

>

> France did best -- with 64.8 deaths deemed preventable by timely and

> effective health care per 100,000 people, in the study period of

2002

> and 2003. Japan had 71.2 and Australia had 71.3 such deaths per

> 100,000 people. The United States had 109.7 such deaths per 100,000

> people, the researchers said.

>

> After the top three, Spain was fourth best, followed in order by

> Italy, Canada, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden, Greece, Austria,

> Germany, Finland, New Zealand, Denmark, Britain, Ireland and

Portugal,

> with the United States last.

>

> PREVIOUS RANKINGS

>

> The researchers compared these rankings with rankings for the same

19

> countries covering the period of 1997 and 1998. France and Japan

also

> were first and second in those rankings, while the United States was

> 15th, meaning it fell four places in the latest rankings.

>

> All the countries made progress in reducing preventable deaths from

> these earlier rankings, the researchers said. These types of deaths

> dropped by an average of 16 percent for the nations in the study,

but

> the U.S. decline was only 4 percent.

>

> The research was backed by the Commonwealth Fund, a private New

> York-based health policy foundation.

>

> " It is startling to see the U.S. falling even farther behind on this

> crucial indicator of health system performance, " Commonwealth Fund

> Senior Vice President Schoen said.

>

> " The fact that other countries are reducing these preventable deaths

> more rapidly, yet spending far less, indicates that policy, goals

and

> efforts to improve health systems make a difference, " Schoen added

in

> a statement.

>

> (Editing by Osterman)

>