It Boils Down to Healthcare

 ‘‘USA per capita healthcare spending is 3x OECD average, yet the average life expectancy and a variety of health indicators in the US fall below average. But if you spend way more than everyone else, shouldn't your results (a.k.a. ‘performance’) be better than everyone else’s, or at least near the top?’’  That's a quote from Mary Meeker's "U.S.A. Inc." presentation. The U.S. demonstrates clearly why "for profit" is not appropriate for all endeavors.  Some things should be non-profit: healthcare and, for the most part, education come to mind.  There was no doubt that the U.S. system would have to change eventually.  The "for profits" have squeezed the system for all it's worth for decades.  Every other advanced industrialized country in the world provides some kind of health insurance for its citizens, yet in the U.S. over 40,000,000 people are left with no insurance at all.  It should be a great embarrassment for the U.S., but how does this occur?  Well, it boils down to special interests and their power over the politicians in the guise of "contributions."  It has tilted the system away from the middle class and toward corporate elites.  It will change over time as the younger generations gain power, but not before the U.S. gets very close to defaulting on their massive debt.  Let's see if it is faced before the crisis occurs!