- Annual health care spending in the US: $2 trillion
- Annual cost of treating chronic illness in the US: $1.5 trillion
Yes. Really.
And nearly half of us have at least one chronic health condition, including
- Chronic pain – 116 million adults
- Arthritis – 50 million
- Type 2 diabetes – 25.6 million
- “Cancer survivorship” – 12 million
“The best health care system in the world”? Hardly. Most expensive, you’d better believe it. (Here’s a look at how the US really fares.)
The really sad part? Such diseases are largely preventable, driven by lifestyle and environmental factors.
Stats source: Institute of Medicine, via the LA Times
I couldn’t agree with you more; as long as people , are being educated about the benefits of good health, then you will most likely see a drop in diseases, cancers and deaths. Great post and I look forward to sharing more with you.