Our Health Policy Matters

Does a stronger safety net mean a healthier community?  Apparently so, according to recent research. It’s a well-known fact that the United States spends 16% of its GDP on health, far more than any other country in the developed world. It’s also a well-known fact that all of our health spending doesn’t give us an edge in life expectancy or a number of other indicators of the overall health of the population.  One of the reasons for this is that we spend so little on public health, compared to health care. But there may be another reason, too.  We spend too little on welfare and social services.  To put this into context, it is important to remember – with a nod to the late George Carlin – that “welfare” wasn’t always one of the “seven dirty words” no politician could utter in public.  (The others today are “liberal,” “tax” and “increase” used in the same sentence, and “bigger,” “government,” and “spending,” also used in the same sentence....

Does a stronger safety net mean a healthier community?  Apparently so, according to recent research. It’s a well-known fact that the United States spends 16% of its GDP on health, far more than any other country in the developed world. It’s also a well-known fact that all of our health spending doesn’t give us an edge in life expectancy or a number of other indicators of the overall health of the population.  One of the reasons for this is that we spend so little on public health, compared to health care. But there may be another reason, too.  We spend too little on welfare and social services.  To put this into context, it is important to remember – with a nod to the late George Carlin – that “welfare” wasn’t always one of the “seven dirty words” no politician could utter in public.  (The others today are “liberal,” “tax” and “increase” used in the same sentence, and “bigger,” “government,” and “spending,” also used in the same sentence....