In America, No One Should Go Without Health Care
BAC shares this belief, and is joining with other unions in an effort to educate members and the public on the state of our health care system and the need to fix it in a way that will:
- Preserve the comprehensive benefits built over decades.
- Constrain costs.
- Improve quality and efficiency.
- Provide health care to everyone.
- Make government an effective watchdog on cost, quality and fairness.
- Keep a significant role for workplace-based benefits.
To learn more and find out how you can help fix what is broken with the health care system, visit www.aflcio.org/healthcare.
Health Care Facts! |
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The United States spent $2 trillion in 2005 on health care, representing 16 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP). In contrast, health care spending accounted for only 11.6 percent of the GDP in Switzerland, 11.1 percent in France, 10.7 percent in Germany, and 9.8 percent in Canada. |
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Life expectancy in the U.S., at less than 78 years, ranks behind Japan, most of Europe, Jordan, Guam and the Cayman Islands. Furthermore, the U.S. has a higher infant mortality rate than 40 other countries, including Cuba, Taiwan and most of Europe. |
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One in four families had a problem paying for medical care in the past year – and more than two-thirds of those with problems had insurance. |
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Nearly 30 percent said someone in their family had delayed medical care in the past year. As health costs increase, employers and trust funds that offer health coverage are finding it harder to compete with nonunion employers in America that don’t offer benefits and companies in countries that have universal coverage. |
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Source: AFL-CIO “FACTS About America’s Broken Health Care System” |
| To learn more, visit www.aflcio.org/healthcare. |
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