Unnatural Causes

Health care affects all of us. Access to health care determines our quality of life.

Our current healthcare system is not only broken; it is in crisis.

The problems with our current system are numerous. Recently Rand Corporation found that 60% of the care delivered in the United States in sub-standard. This study included some of the best hospitals to be found in this country.

There are other major problems:

There is great inefficiency in the present healthcare system.
California has over 1500 insurance plans.
With a major portion of health dollars going to "administration" costs, including large executive salaries, commissions, and stockholder dividends, fewer dollars actually go to health care.

7 million Californians are uninsured. Millions more are underinsured
Costs are rising for premiums, co-pays, and deductibles for less coverage.
People have fewer choices.
Hospitals, emergency rooms and trauma centers are closing.
Half of personal bankruptcies are caused by medical bills.
For-profit managed care maximizes profit (not our health) and rations care.
Lack of insurance is the 7th leading cause of death in the United States.

NUSD teachers have seen their health care premiums rise dramatically over the past several years. We all need to educate ourselves so we can intelligently advocate for an adequate and fair health care system. A good way to start is the PBS Documentary Unnatural Causes .

Below is a trailer from this excellent series on the critical status of health care in America.



To view the entire PBS documentary go to www.unnaturalcauses.org .