Lloyd Russell: Quality of care in America varies wildly, with ‘red’ states doing the worst

Idaho Rep. Raul Labrador declared: “Nobody dies because they don’t have access to health care.” Using data from the CDC, life expectancy in our 50 states ranges from Hawaii’s 81.3 years to Mississippi’s 75.0. The 10 states with the longest life expectancy are “blue,” excepting No. 10, Utah. The 10 states with the shortest life expectancy are all “red.” Not surprisingly, six of these are among the 19 Republican-controlled states that resisted Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion.

According to the CIA’s “World Factbook,” in a country-by-country comparison of life expectancies the U.S. comes is No. 43 at 79.8 years. Mississippi’s 75.0 is closer to North Korea’s 70.4 than to California’s 80.3 years.

For those who care about cost, the World Health Organization puts the price of healthcare in the U.S. at $9,451 per person – highest in the world. Japan, with a lifespan of 85.0 years, has a per capita cost of $3,727. The U.S. could have a cheaper more efficient system simply by copying any developed country. Unfortunately, the mammon-worshiping Trumpsky/Ryan GOP is more interested in enriching the pharmaceutical and insurance industries. Thank God the GOP is not trying to reinvent the wheel – we’d all be driving on square rims.

This story was originally published June 12, 2017 at 3:52 PM with the headline "Lloyd Russell: Quality of care in America varies wildly, with ‘red’ states doing the worst."