Medical costs in 2016 hit $3.35 trillion (that's TRILLION) in the U.S., or over $10,000 for every single man, woman, and child. Is it any wonder why, no matter whether it's Obamacare or Trumpcare or someone else's care, it's pretty much doomed and likely to not work? Is it any wonder why insurance rates are sky high? Just like medicine, "healthcare" hides the problem rather than fixing the cause.
The cost of drugs just for cancer - The average cancer drug price for approximately 1 year of therapy or a total treatment duration was less than $10,000 before 2000, and had increased to $30,000 to $50,000 by 2005. In 2012, 12 of the 13 new drugs approved for cancer indications were priced above $100,000 per year of therapy. Today, it may be as high as $120,000+ for some of those drugs. Keep in mind, this is only for the drugs, not the treatment or surgery (do you really believe they'll find a cure for cancer and lose all that income?). And, of course, I'm sure most of you have heard about the Epi-Pen price increase.
A statistical analysis reveals that prescription drugs, which kill over 110,000/year in the U.S., are 16,400% more deadly than terrorists. Iatrogenic deaths — deaths caused by doctors, hospitals, and drugs — had already reached 783,000 per year over a decade ago (see link in next paragraph: “Death by Medicine” PDF), which is the equivalent of multiple jumbo jet airliners dropping out of the sky every single day, filled with hundreds of passengers each.
Not only are the drugs ineffective much of the time (not to mention habit forming and may end up killing you), but the drug companies do their best to block alternative treatments that cost next to nothing and many times actually work better, and have no side effects. With many drugs, people have to take another drug to counteract the side effects of the first drug. What are the results of all the medical interventions? You can see them at this link: Death by Medicine Statistics. I saw people in the news tonight who are scared of dying if they lose their insurance. After looking at these statistics, I wonder if they may have a better chance of dying because of their insurance.
What can be done to lower costs? Pass laws regulating drug prices and medical services, outlaw drug company advertising in the media, and outlaw drug company lobbying in Congress. Since none of these things will ever actually happen, what can YOU do? The only thing you can, and that I did - change to a healthy lifestyle. What can that do? Take you out of the so-called health care system (which is really the sick care system) because you'll most likely be healthy and have no need for it...barring injuries and pre-existing conditions.
What it did for me: I went from getting sick 4-5 times per year with every cold and flu going around, had bronchitis, had an ulcer in my 20s, was diagnosed with IBS at 30, got headaches, had dandruff, severe allergies and hay fever, etc., all by the time I was 30. Then I started learning about nutrition, changed my diet, eliminated sugar, chemicals in my food, trans-fats, etc. A friend recommended the book, Health Secrets of the Hunza, and told me to follow that diet. I did and started getting sick less often, down to about once a year, and all the other problems started fading out and going away. Next, I started taking vitamins and herbs, along with doing internal body cleanses with herbs. Results? It took a while, but now I almost never get sick (been over 7 years since I was last sick) and have few other problems. Oh - and I never get vaccinated (too many toxins in them). Even though I have the VA healthcare system I seldom use it, except for injuries, perhaps every 5 years or so.
Unfortunately, I can't eliminate environmental toxins (pesticides, car fumes, glyphosate, other toxins) but do my best to avoid them when I am able to and eat a diet that helps detoxify my system. I eat almost all organic foods, whole foods that actually grow in the ground, take vitamins and herbs, and get exercise and good sleep. And do my best to avoid stress. I have no need for prescription or OTC drugs. You can do this, too. With the way things are going, do you really have a choice?
"Affordable Health Care" is, in my opinion, a joke at best, a nightmare at worst. It's not healthcare and it definitely isn't affordable. My brother stepped on a nail - the cost: $1,400 with the medical system. Until people start taking responsibility for their own health, or the government regulates health costs (yeah, right), I doubt there will be any legislation that actually works or helps.
Well, that's my take on "Health Care" and my advice.
