A Response to David Cross': Why America Sucks at Everything

A Response to David Cross: Why America Sucks at Everything

1. Anyone who sites life expectancy as an indicator of poor healthcare has not been following the data.

It is very hard to compare life expectancy across nations but, Life expectancy in the USA, net of homicides, accidents and drug OD's is probably higher in the USA than Denmark. That is because Healthcare beyond the cheap basics, that everyone gets (vaccinations, antibiotics, trauma care), has very little effect on Life Expectancy (which BTW should be current average life length) and USAers are a bit wild. More and better police would have a bigger effect on Life expectancy than Single payer would. (Look up the Rand health insurance experiment)

2. The income life expectancy gradient is steeper in Canada than in the USA.

Indeed, the health-income gradient is slightly steeper

Now as I said above I think (and most people who study it agree) that healthcare beyond the cheap stuff (vaccinations, antibiotics, trauma care) that everyone gets, has little effect on Life expectancy BUT some of those who believe it does a significant effect, say that the health-income gradient is slightly steeper in Canada than the USA because in the USA the people in the system look at a low SES person and see dollar signs but in Canada they just see a low SES person who, in their mind probably brought it on themselves. (As much as good people should and often do resists that thinking, we are all subject to BTW.)