Political Quotes

Tom Harkin: “I am convinced now more than ever that we really do not have a health care system in America. We have a ``sick care…”

On the recordApril 21, 2004
I am convinced now more than ever that we really do not have a health care system in America. We have a ``sick care system'' in America. In the United States we spend in excess of $1.5 trillion a year on health care. Fully 75 percent of that total is accounted for by chronic diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes. What these diseases have in common is, in so many cases, they are preventable. In the United States we fail to make an up-front investment in prevention, so we end up spending hundreds of billions on hospitalization, treatment, and disability.
Said by
Tom Harkin
Democratic · Iowa
Source
govinfo.gov

Editor's note · Context

Discussing the need for a shift from a sick care system to a focus on wellness and prevention in health care.

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