Tom Harkin: “something is wrong when 45 million Americans, 8 out of 10 of them in working families, cannot afford access to quality…”

“something is wrong when 45 million Americans, 8 out of 10 of them in working families, cannot afford access to quality health insurance. This past weekend I met a woman in Des Moines who has been without health insurance for herself and her daughter since her husband died several years ago. She works hard as an administrative assistant in a small law office. She lives, like many Iowans, from paycheck to paycheck. She cannot afford private health insurance and she makes too much money to qualify for the State's Children's Health Insurance Program or Medicaid. This has consequences. She has not had any screenings or preventive care in years. Her daughter does not go to the doctor regularly, despite the fact that their family has a long history of diabetes and cancer. She knows she is at risk but cannot do anything about it. What happens to her if she gets sick? Many people believe the United States has the best health care system in the world--the best treatments, the best medical technology, the best pharmaceuticals. But this is a cruel joke to the uninsured, including more than 8 million children, because they are forced to make do with substandard care or none at all. The result is a paradox. The United States has a world-class health care system, but we fall behind most industrialized countries when our general health outcomes are measured. In 2000, the World Health Organization ranked our health care system 37th in outcomes that our health system provides.…”