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a film by Michael Moore:
SiCKO
"Sicko is a documentary film concerned about the
state of our current medical care and public policy. Insightful Moore examines public policy exploited
by insurance companies, government, and powerful few. America's medical crisis is public policy, an outcome
of greed, and government has no alternative but to end the exploitation and provide
medical assurance for all. Our obligation is to provide responsibility and follow the example of Canada, Great Britain,
and France. A good society is based on public policy which offers medical services to all. Only a healthy mind and body
can contribute to society and support the principles of a just society." Deanna
Dear Friends:
Thank you for your comments. Sicko
is a partial insight of the medical crises. Aging populations, smoking, obestity, and sky-high costs are
problems faced by nations the world over.
The point of the matter is about 500,000 Americans
each year are leaving the U.S. for health care reasons and this is going to grow. U.S. hospitals and doctors complain,
but the reality is, hospitals and doctors have had plenty of time to straighten out their acts. They've had plenty
of opportunities to create better, more economical health care services. They failed do so.
I personally see a healthy competition from abroad which could
have a potentially positive structural impact on how the U.S. delivers health services. I believe the emergence of world
class health care across the Pacific will likely give U.S. hospitals and clinics a much needed kick in the bedpan.
For example, before 1997, the U.S. and Europe were the
major recipients of international medical travelers, while Singapore was the major hub for Asia. After the attacks of Sept.11,
2001 an increasing number of patients from the Middle East began traveling to Asia for care. They used to go to America or
Europe, but visas became problematic, so they started going to Thailand, Singapore, and India. According to the
World Health Care Congress 92,000 people from Middle Eastern countries in the last year was served in Bumrungrad.
This represents about 20% of total international business for the hospital.
Because U.S. hospitals and doctors fail to straigten out their
acts, the emergence of Asian, Latin Americans, and Eastern European medical centers that provide state of the art procedures
with the gentle price tag has many U.S. citizens flying abroad to seek care they might have gotten at their local hospitals.
Brazil, Costa Rica, and South Africa currently are hot destinations
for cosmetic procedures. Costa Rica, Mexico, and Hungary are magnets for good affordable denstistry. India, Thailand, Malaysia,
and Singapore are the best choices for major surgeries including heart surgeries, organ transplants, and orthopedics.
Medical outsourcing is the outcome of our medical
crises. The single payer national health systems of the sort found in the U.K, Canada, and all over Europe make
the dynamics a bit different, but they certainly do no avert the crises of aging popluations, smoking, and obesity.
So, unless we change to a nation of hospitality found overseas
and slow down the frazzling pace and impersonal nature of our health care people would not hesitate to go to any of
the hospitals which offer U.S. standards or better. The medical
outsourcing is the future of the U.S. unless we take responsibility in creating better and more economical
health services. Sicko is a partial insight of the medical crises.
The crises is much deeper and the medical establishment have had plenty of time to straighten out their acts. They've had
plenty of opportunities to create better more economical health care serivices.
-
Because of our greed medical outsourcing is the future for
the U.S.
-
Because of our greed and impersonal nature we
seek instant gratification opposed to a long term plan of affordable health care.
-
To lessen the outsourcing and reverse consequences the solution
is affordable health care. Hospitals and doctors fail to see the simplicity. The voters must set the
record straight for the medical establishment.
*******************************************************
SiCKO' Truth Squad
'SiCKO' Factual Backup
SiCKO: There are nearly 50 million Americans without health insurance.
- The amount of uninsured is rising every year, as premiums continue to skyrocket and wages stagnate. From
2004 to 2005 the number of uninsured rose 1.3 million, and rose up nearly 6 million from 2001-2005. Leighton Ku, "Census Revises
Estimates Of The Number Of Uninsured People," Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, April 5, 2007 http://www.cbpp.org/4-5-07health.htm. With 44.8 uninsured in 2005, in 2007 the number will be much higher. Professors Todd Gilmer and Richard
Kronick, in "It's The Premiums, Stupid: Projections Of The Uninsured Through 2013," Health Affairs, 10.1377/hlthaff.w5.143,
"project that the number of non-elderly uninsured Americans will grow from forty-five million in 2003 to fifty-six million
by 2013." According to these authors, by now the number of non-elderly uninsured by this date clearly would be nearly 50 million.
SiCKO: 18,000 Americans will die this year simply because they're uninsured.
- According to the Institute of Medicine, "lack of health insurance causes roughly 18,000 unnecessary deaths
every year in the United States. Although America leads the world in spending on health care, it is the only wealthy, industrialized
nation that does not ensure that all citizens have coverage." Insuring America's Health: Principles and Recommendations, Institute
of Medicine, January 2004.
http://www.iom.edu/?id=19175
SiCKO: Richard Nixon and John Ehrlichman are heard discussing the concept of a health maintenance organization
in Oval Office Recordings.
- The next day, Nixon called for a "new national health strategy" that had four points for expanding the
proliferation of health maintenance organizations, or HMOs. "Special Message to the Congress Proposing a National Health Strategy,"
February 18th, 1971, http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=3311
- The term "health maintenance organization" was coined by Nixon advisor Paul Ellwood. Patricia Bauman,
"The Formulation and Evolution of the Health Maintenance Organization Policy, 1970-1973, Social Science & Medicine, vol.
10. 1976. After Congress passed Nixon's HMO Act in 1973, HMOs in America increased nine-fold in just ten years. N. R. Kleinfield,
"The King of the HMO Mountain," New York Times, July 31, 1983.
SiCKO: The American Medical Association distributed a record featuring Ronald Reagan discussing the evils
of socialized medicine.
- Ronald Reagan's recording was widely available in the 1960s, and was a part of the American Medical Association's
"Operation Coffee Cup," a coordinated rebuttal to Democrats' push for Medicare. Max Skidmore, "Ronald Reagan and Operation
Coffee Cup: A Hidden Episode in American Political History," Journal of American Culture, vol. 12. 1989.
SiCKO: $100 million spent to defeat Hillary's health care plan.
- "Even before debate began in Congress, a powerful coalition had been cobbled together to fight Clintoncare,
as opponents labeled it - congressional Republicans, the insurance industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the National Federation
of Independent Businesses, the Business Roundtable, the Christian Coalition, the conservative radio talk show network. Those
groups spent between $100 million and $ 300 million to defeat it. And the battle was fought like a presidential campaign -
with a TV advertising campaign, a network of field operatives and public relations experts to lobby members of Congress back
in their districts." Rob Christensen, "Who killed health care reform? Answer: Everyone," News & Observer, June 19, 1996.
- "In 1993-94, the Health Insurance Association of America, a trade group, spent about $15 million on advertising
to defeat Clinton's proposed overhaul of the nation's health care system." John MacDonald, "Proponents, Opponents Join Battle
Over Drug Price Limits," Hartford Courant, June 21, 2000.
- "'We spent $1.4 million to fight President Clinton's plan,' [Mike Russell of the Christian Coalition]
says." Harold Cox, "Business will spearhead Health Reform II ; Old enemies of Clinton's plan in lead," Washington Times, December
27, 1994.
- "A study by Citizen Action, a consumer group, reports that doctors, hospitals, insurance companies and
other providers of medical services made campaign contributions of $ 79 million during the 1993-1994 election cycle. The insurance
industry passed out $16 million. The American Medical Association, which objects to cost-control measures, contributed $ 3
million." Froma Harrop, "The big lie about health reform," Rocky Mountain News, August 20, 1995.
- "According to [Citizens for a Sound Economy] spokesman Brent Bahler, the group has not bought any airtime
for commercials but has 'tentative plans' for a grassroots advocacy effort that would include an advertising component. Last
year, Bahler said, the CSE spent more than $2 million on print, radio and television advertising to defeat Clinton's health
care reform plan." James A. Barnes, "RNC Turns To TV Ads On Budget," National Journal, 5.16.95.
SiCKO: The United States is ranked #37 as a health system by the World Health Organization.
- "The U. S. health system spends a higher portion of its gross domestic product than any other country
but ranks 37 out of 191 countries according to its performance, the report finds." "World Health Organization Assesses The
World's Health Systems," Press Release, WHO/44, June 21, 2000. http://www.who.int/inf-pr-2000/en/pr2000-44.html
SiCKO: Health industry companies accused of wrongdoing in Sicko.
- Aetna: "Aetna Inc. … settled with the plaintiffs, which include the medical associations of California
and Texas. Aetna agreed to pay the plaintiffs $120 million." Milt Freudenheim, "Class-Action Status Is Upheld for Doctors
Suing Insurers," New York Times, September 2, 2004. See also, Susan Beck, "HMO Postmortem," American Lawyer, October 10, 2003.
Settlement Agreement, http://www.aetna.com/provider/agreement_with_physicians.html
- Blue Cross/Blue Shield: "Sixty-seven Blue Cross/Blue Shield companies across the nation have paid the
United States a total of $117 million to settle government claims that Medicare made primary payments for health care services
that should have been paid by the Blue Cross/Blue Shield private insurance companies, the Department of Justice announced
today." "Blue Cross/Blue Shield Companies Settle Medicare Claims, Pay United States $117 Million, Agree To Share Information,"
Department of Justice News Release, October 25, 1995.
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/Pre_96/October95/551.txt.html
- Cigna: "Cigna Corporation, [has] settled with the plaintiffs, which include the medical associations
of California and Texas. … Cigna agreed to pay $85 million." Milt Freudenheim, "Class-Action Status Is Upheld for Doctors
Suing Insurers," New York Times, September 2, 2004.
- "HCA Inc. (formerly known as Columbia/HCA and HCA - The Healthcare Company) has agreed to pay the United
States $631 million in civil penalties and damages arising from false claims the government alleged it submitted to Medicare
and other federal health programs, the Justice Department announced today. … Previously, on December 14, 2000, HCA subsidiaries
pled guilty to substantial criminal conduct and paid more than $840 million in criminal fines, civil restitution and penalties.
Combined with today's separate administrative settlement with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), under
which HCA will pay an additional $250 million to resolve overpayment claims arising from certain of its cost reporting practices,
the government will have recovered $1.7 billion from HCA, by far the largest recovery ever reached by the government in a
health care fraud investigation." "Largest Health Care Fraud Case In U.S. History Settled; HCA Investigation Nets Record Total
Of $1.7 Billion," Department of Justice News Release, June 26, 2003.
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2003/June/03_civ_386.htm
SiCKO: Executive Compensation
- Bill McGuire has stock options worth $1.6 billion at the end of 2005, as CEO of UnitedHealth Group. Robert
Simison, "SEC Investigates UnitedHealth Over Stock-Options Practices," Bloomberg News, December 27, 2006; Michael Regan, "Business
2006: Who Won, Who Lost," Associated Press,December 26, 2006.
SiCKO: There are four times as many health care lobbyists as there are members of Congress.
- According to the Center for Responsive Politics (www.opensecrets.org), in 2005 there were 2,084 health care lobbyists registered with the federal government. With 535 members
of Congress, that's 3.895 lobbyists per member.
SiCKO: Hillary Clinton became the second largest recipient in the Senate of health care industry contributions.
- "As she runs for re-election to the Senate from New York this year and lays the groundwork for a possible
presidential bid in 2008, Mrs. Clinton is receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from doctors,
hospitals, drug manufacturers and insurers. Nationwide, she is the No. 2 recipient of donations from the industry, trailing
only Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, a member of the Republican leadership." Raymond Hernandez and Robert Pear, "Once
an Enemy, Health Industry Warms to Clinton," New York Times, July 12, 2006.
SiCKO: Drug industry money to members of Congress, and the president, who led the effort to pass the Medicare
Part D prescription drug plan.
- "The health industry gave $14 million total to the eleven elected officials largely credited with negotiating
the bill. Pharmaceutical company PACs, employees, and their families gave more than $3 million in campaign contributions to
(those) eleven elected officials." Buying A Law: Big Pharma's Big Money and the Bush Medicare Plan, Campaign Money Watch,
January 2004.
http://www.ourfuture.org/docUploads/donnelly$_1-15-04.pdf
SiCKO: The Medicare Part D plan will hand over $800 billion of our tax dollars to the drug and health
insurance industry.
SiCKO: The elderly could end up paying more for their prescription drugs than they did before under Part
D - and a majority of senior citizens could still pay over $2000 a year.
- "For all patients, Medicare covers 75 percent of the first $2,250 worth of drugs. But after that, coverage
drops to zero - and doesn't resume until the patient hits $5,100 in expenses. Then Medicare kicks in again, paying 95 percent
of costs. But it's this gap - of almost $3,000 - that many sick and disabled seniors call unaffordable." Medicare's 'Donut
Hole,' CBS News, July 26, 2006.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/07/26/eveningnews/main1839288.shtml
- "Nearly 7 million seniors and individuals with disabilities who purchased stand-alone prescription drug
coverage are now at risk of falling into the 'doughnut hole.' According to a report released today by Senior Democrats on
the House Ways and Means Committee… nearly 88 percent of new drug plan enrollees, roughly 7 million individuals, are
at risk of losing coverage for their medications while they continue to pay monthly premiums to their insurers. The report
further details how few individuals have enrolled in plans without doughnut holes, presumably because of the prohibitive cost
of such plans." "88% Of New Medicare Drug Program Enrollees At Risk Of Falling Into The 'Doughnut Hole,'" Joint News Release
From Representative Charles B. Rangel, Ranking Democrat, Committee On Ways And Means, Representative Pete Stark, Ranking Democrat,
Subcommittee On Health, Committee On Ways And Means, Representative Sander M. Levin, Ranking Democrat, Subcommittee On Social
Security, Committee On Ways And Means, September 21, 2006.
http://www.house.gov/list/press/wm31_democrats/060921_88
_of_new_medicare_drug_program_enrollees_at_risk_of_falling
_into_the_doughnut_hole.html
- "Over the past year, Part D drug prices have increased several times faster than the rate of inflation.
Families USA analyzed the prices for 15 of the drugs most frequently prescribed to seniors. We examined prices for each of
the plans offered by the largest Part D insurers, which together cover about two-thirds of all Part D beneficiaries. We then
compared the lowest available Part D price for each drug in April 2006 with the lowest available price for the same drug in
April 2007. The lowest price for every one of the top 15 drugs prescribed to seniors increased, and the median increase was
9.2 percent." Medicare Part D Prices Are Climbing Quickly, FamiliesUSA, April 2007.
http://www.familiesusa.org/assets/pdfs/medicare-part-d-drug-prices.PDF
SiCKO: Fourteen Congressional aides went to work for the industry; Billy Tauzin left Congress to become
CEO of PhRMA for a $2 million annual salary.
- "Retiring Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La., who stepped down earlier this year as chairman of the House committee
that regulates the pharmaceutical industry, will become the new president and CEO of the drug industry's top lobbying group…Public
Citizen, a non-profit consumer advocacy group, called Tauzin's hiring 'yet another example of how public service is leading
to private riches.' Tauzin gets a pay package reportedly worth at least $2 million a year, making him one of the highest-paid
lobbyists in Washington." "Tauzin switches sides from drug industry overseer to lobbyist," USA Today, December 15, 2004..
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/health/drugs/2004-12-
15-drugs-usat_x.htm
SiCKO: Canadians live three years longer than we do.
- The 2006 United Nations Human Development Report's human development index states the life expectancy
in the United States is 77.5, and the life expectancy in Canada is 80.2. Human Development Report 2006, United Nations Development
Programme, 2006 at 283.
http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/pdfs/report/HDR06-complete.pdf.
SiCKO: Tommy Douglas, who pioneered Canada's health care system, was heralded as the nation's singular
most important person.
- "In November 2004, Canadians voted Tommy Douglas the Greatest Canadian of all time following a nationwide
contest. Over 1.2 million votes were cast in a frenzy of voting that took place over six weeks as each of 10 advocates made
their case for the Top 10 nominees in special feature programs on CBC Television… . From his first foray into public
office politics in 1934 to his post-retirement years in the 1970s, Canada's 'father of Medicare' stayed true to his socialist
beliefs -- often at the cost of his own political fortune -- and earned himself the respect of millions of Canadians in the
process." "The Greatest Canadian," CBC, 2004. http://www.cbc.ca/greatest
SiCKO: Canadian "wait times" not nearly as long as some try to allege.
- According to Statistics Canada, the official government statistical agency, "In 2005, the median waiting
time was about 4 weeks for specialist visits, 4 weeks for non-emergency surgery, and 3 weeks for diagnostic tests. Nationally,
median waiting times remained stable between 2003 and 2005 - but there were some differences at the provincial level for selected
specialized services.… 70 to 80 percent of Canadians find their waiting times acceptable" "Access to health care services
in Canada, Waiting times for specialized services (January to December 2005)," Statistics Canada, http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/82-575-XIE/82-575-
XIE2006002.htm
- A recent study of emergency care in Ontario found that overall, "50% of patients triaged as CTAS I [most
acute] were seen by a physician within 6 minutes and 86% were seen within 30 minutes of arriving at the [Emergency Department].
In contrast, the 50% of patients triaged as CTAS IV or V who were seen most quickly waited an hour or less, while 1 in 10
waited three hours or more. Understanding Emergency Department Wait Times: How Long Do People Spend in Emergency Departments
in Ontario? Canadian Institute for Health Information, January 2007.
http://www.cihi.ca/cihiweb/dispPage.jsp?cw_page=reports_
wait_times_bulletins_e
- "Gerard Anderson, a Johns Hopkins health policy professor who has spent his career examining the world's
healthcare, said there are delays, but not as many as conservatives state. In Canada, the United Kingdom and France, 'three
percent of hospital discharges had delays in treatment,' Anderson told The Miami Herald. 'That's a relatively small number,
and they're all elective surgeries, such as hip and knee replacement.' John Dorschner, "'Sicko' film is set to spark debate;
Reformers are gearing up for 'Sicko,' the first major movie to examine America's often maligned healthcare system," Miami
Herald, June 29, 2007.
SiCKO: Drugs in England only cost $10.
- For much of 2006, the standard charge for a prescription was £6.65. "The cost of an NHS prescription
in England is to rise by 15p to £6.65 from the start of April." "Prescription charge to rise 15p," BBC News, March 13 2006.
- From April 1 2007 to present, the charge is £6.85. "There are many unacceptable inequities and anomalies
in the present system. Although around four out of five prescriptions are exempt (see below for list of exempt categories),
the price of a prescription (£6.85 from 1 April 2007) often hits those who cannot afford such charges. There are many people
with chronic conditions who are not exempt and those on low incomes find it very difficult to pay. This causes a disproportionate
levy on a limited section of the population." British Medical Association, "Funding - Prescription Changes," March 2007. http://www.bma.org.uk/ap.nsf/Content/FundingPrescriptionCharges
SiCKO: After losing 42,000 civilians in eight months during a vicious bombing campaign during World War
II, Britain pulled together and instituted a National Health Insurance program in 1948.
- "The Blitz was September 7, 1940 through May 11 1941. "42,000 civilians are estimated to have died during
the campaign, with over 50,000 injured, and around 130,000 houses destroyed." See, "Remembering the Blitz,"
http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/archive/exhibits/blitz/intro.html; "Living With War; Air Raids," The Discovery Channel,
http://www.discoverychannel.co.uk/ww2_home/ww2_living_with
_war/index.shtml
- "The NHS was set up in 1948 and is now the largest organisation in Europe. It is recognised as one of
the best health services in the world by the World Health Organisation but there need to be improvements to cope with the
demands of the 21st century." "About the NHS," NHA website,
http://www.nhs.uk/Aboutnhs/howthenhsworks/Pages/
HowtheNHSworks.aspx
SiCKO: In a study of older Americans and Brits, the Brits had less of almost every major disease. Even
the poorest Brit can expect to live longer than the richest American.
- "The US population in late middle age is less healthy than the equivalent British population for diabetes,
hypertension, heart disease, myocardial infarction, stroke, lung disease, and cancer. Within each country, there exists a
pronounced negative socioeconomic status (SES) gradient with self-reported disease so that health disparities are largest
at the bottom of the education or income variants of the SES hierarchy. This conclusion is generally robust to control for
a standard set of behavioral risk factors, including smoking, overweight, obesity, and alcohol drinking, which explain very
little of these health differences… Level differences between countries are sufficiently large that individuals in the
top of the education and income strata in the United States have comparable rates of diabetes and heart disease as those in
the bottom of the income and education strata in England." (See also Table 1 - for example, prevalence of diabetes among high-income
Americans is 8.2 per thousand, while it's 7.3 among low-income Brits.) Banks, Marmot et al., "Disease and Disadvantage in
the United States and in England," Journal of the American Medical Association, 2006;295:2037-2045.
SiCKO: A baby born in El Salvador has a better chance of surviving than a baby born in Detroit.
- According to the Michigan Department of Community Health, the rate of infant deaths for Detroit is 15.9
per thousand. "Number of Infant Deaths, Live Births and Infant Death Rates for Selected Cities of Residence, 2005 and 2001
- 2005 Average," Michigan Department of Community Health Web Site, http://www.mdch.state.mi.us/pha/osr/InDxMain/Tab4.asp.
SiCKO: Around 65 percent of young Americans can't find Britain on a map.
SiCKO: Companies that no longer offer pensions to new employees.
SiCKO: Like Canadians and Brits, the French live longer than we do.
- The 2006 United Nations Human Development Report's human development index states the life expectancy
in the United States is 77.5, the United Kingdom is 78.5, France is 79.6, and Canada is 80.2. Human Development Report 2006,
United Nations Development Programme, 2006 at 283.
http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/pdfs/report/HDR06-complete.pdf.
SiCKO: The productivity rate per hour in France is higher than in America.
- "Britain has yet to catch up with its rivals on productivity. Gordon Brown, the chancellor, has long
wished to close Britain's productivity gap with other countries. It is proving a long haul. In 2004, output per hour worked
was 19% higher in France, 15% higher in America and 5% higher in Germany than it was in Britain." "Poor show; International
comparisons," The Economist, January 21, 2006.
SiCKO: French policy on childcare and household assistance for new parents.
- According to the French-American Foundation comprehensive review of child care, "For non-working parents
or parents who work part-time, haltes garderies (drop-in centers) provide part-time, occasional, and drop-in care. Haltes
garderies are also subsidized (by municipality and the National Family Allowance Fund), with parents paying a portion of the
costs based on a sliding scale (parents pay an average of $1 per hour). … For working parents [there are] licensed family
day care providers (assistants maternelles), licensed babysitters at home (social security costs and salaries subsidized by
the National Family Allowance Fund)." Peer, Shanny., "The French Early Education System," French-American Foundation, November
13, 2003.,
www.eoionline.org/ELC/Presentations/Peer4.pdf
SiCKO: There is a company in France, SOS Medecins, which will perform doctor house calls at any time.
SiCKO: The government initially refused to pay for the health care of 9/11 volunteers, because they were
not on the government payroll. It remains difficult for the volunteers to access the $50 million fund that has been appropriated
for their care.
- The Department of Defense and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Recovery From and Response to
Terrorist Attacks on the United States Act provided a total of $175 million for workers compensation programs - $125 million
to NYS Workers Compensation Review Board, and an additional $50 million to reimburse the NYS Uninsured Employers Fund, including
for benefits paid to volunteers. However, there have been major delays in getting money to volunteers. See. e.g. "Statement
of Robert E. Robertson, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues," "September 11, Federal Assistance for
New York Workers' Compensation Costs," United States Government Accountability Office, (GAO-04-1068T) September 8, 2004.
- "With strong advocacy from New York's Congressional Delegation and labor leaders, a portion - about $52
million - of the $125 million in federal funding that had been allocated for administering workers compensation claims was
re-allocated to provide some funding for medical treatment programs, but it will only meet a fraction of the need. Congress
approved the legislation authorizing this funding in late December 2005." Devlin Barrett, "Congress Gives New Life to 9/11
Programs," Newsday, December 22, 2005.
- A $52 million fund for volunteers was eventually established, but experts agree it's inadequate. The
New York Times reported on September 6, 2006 that "Dr. John Howard, who was named the federal 9/11 health coordinator in February,
has already said that the $52 million the federal government has appropriated for treatment late last year is inadequate.
He said in an interview yesterday that the new study will very likely mean that the gap between funds and the need for them
is going to grow." Anthony DePalma, "Illness Persisting in 9/11 Workers, Big Study Finds," New York Times, September 6, 2006.
SiCKO: American officials claim that detainees at Guantanamo Bay receive excellent health care.
- "There is still acute care 24 hours a day, in which surgical procedures, everything, can be performed
right there in the detainee camps, but as those wounds healed and as the detainees got further and further away from acute
injuries, there has been increasing emphasis on preventative care. Indeed, the immunization rate there is higher than in the
United States of America…. Things such as screening for cancer have taken place there. Colonoscopies--a procedure which,
as we all know, is used commonly in this country to screen for colon cancer--are performed there on a routine basis. The health
personnel-to-detainee ratio is 1 to 4--remarkably high. That is all health personnel who are there. And I guess, as I left
this briefing and the opportunity to talk to the doctors and the nurses and the psychologists and the psychiatrists, I left
with an impression that health care there is clearly better than they received at home and as good as many people receive
in the United States of America." Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN), remarks on Guantanamo Bay, U.S. Senate, September 12, 2006.
- "They go out, they do sick call on the blocks three times per week, care for them there, if they can…
We have diabetes. We have high blood pressure, high cholesterol. Those detainees -- we've created a population health database
so that we can track those detainees to make sure we're seeing them frequently, monitoring their labs and their overall health."
Statement of Navy Commander Cary Ostergaard. "Hearing Of The House Armed Services Committee Subject: Detainee Operations At
Guantanamo Bay," June 29, 2005.
SiCKO: Cuba is one of the most generous countries in providing doctors to the third world.
- "WHO statistics show that the incidence of AIDS in Cuba is the lowest in this hemisphere, and there are
now more than 800 Cuban doctors in Haiti alone working to control the AIDS epidemic. President Castro has offered an almost
unlimited number to be sent to Africa, to be paid by the Cuban government with only a small stipend from the host countries."
"President Carter's Cuba Trip Report By Jimmy Carter," May 21, 2002.
http://www.cartercenter.org/news/documents/doc528.html
- "The close friendship between Cuban leader Fidel Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has netted
Venezuela a loan of 20,000 Cuban health workers -- including 14,000 doctors, according to the Venezuelan government -- who
work in poor barrios and rural outposts for stipends seven times higher on average than their salaries at home. Castro has
vowed to send Chavez as many as 10,000 additional medical workers by year's end." "As Cuba Loans Doctors Abroad, Some Patients
Object at Home," Boston Globe, August 25, 2005.
- "President Evo Morales on Friday heeded the wishes of six visiting U.S. senators by acknowledging the
positive effects of American aid in his country - but added that Cuban doctors had had a greater impact on Bolivia than their
U.S. counterparts… [I]n a Friday interview with Bolivian radio network Fides, Morales said the assistance of Cuban leader
Fidel Castro - who has sent Bolivia some 1,700 doctors and paramedics this year alone, setting up free hospitals and eye clinics
throughout Bolivia -- outshines the United States' own medical aid." "Morales Says Cuban Doctors top U.S. Medical Aid," Boston
Globe, December 29, 2006.
SiCKO: In the U.S., health care costs run nearly $7,000 per person. But in Cuba, they spend around $200
per person.
- United States health spending per capita is $6,697 per person according to Catlin, A, C. Cowan, S. Heffler,
et al, "National Health Spending in 2005." Health Affairs 26:1 (2006). As with the number of uninsured, the number continues
to increase and is projected to be $7,092 per capita in 2006, $7,498 per capita in 2007 and reaching $12,782 by 2016, according
the Department of Health and Human Services Center for Medicare and Medicaid Expenditures, National Health Expenditures Projections
2006-2016,
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/NationalHealthExpendData/downloads/proj2006.pdf
SiCKO: In Cuba, access to health care is universal.
- "Cuban dissatisfaction with their personal lives does not mean they are negative about the revolutionary
government's achievements in health care and education. A near unanimous 96 percent of respondents say that health care in
Cuba is accessible to everyone. Gallup polls in other Latin American cities have found that on average only 42 percent believe
health care is accessible." Gallup/ Consultorķa Interdisciplinaria en Desarrollo, "Cubans Show Little Satisfaction with Opportunities
and Individual Freedom Rare Independent Survey Finds Large Majorities Are Still Proud of Island's Health Care and Education,"
January 10, 2007.
http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/brlatinamericara/
300.php?nid=&id=&pnt=300&lb=brla
SiCKO: Cuba has a lower infant mortality rate and a longer average lifespan than the United States.
- The 2006 United Nations Human Development Report's human development index states the life expectancy
in the United States is 77.5, and is 77.6 in Cuba. Human Development Report 2006, United Nations Development Programme, 2006
at 283. http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/pdfs/report/HDR06-complete.pdf.
- According to the United Nations Statistics Division, Population and Vital Statistics Report, the rate
of infant deaths per thousand in Cuba is 6.2 per thousand, and in the United States is 6.8. "Table 3, Live births, deaths,
and infant deaths, latest available year, June 15, 2007."
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/vitstats/serATab3.pdf
Selling Sickness
The following is a poem dedicated to the couple who lost their
lovely little girl to "Paxil", selling sickness to young people.
Dear Dad and Mom:
My heart troubled for the loss
of your daughter. The film of your precious little girl has touched the Heart of the World. I
am so sorry for your loss and thank you for sharing your daughter with me.
Sincerely,
Deanna Adams
A Poem
Selling
Sickness to a Teenager
At dawn a little girl
looks forward to a new day
her mother wakes her: touches
her dainty hands
she looks at her face:
little troubled, innocent
her clothes set
aside: a dress, socks, and shoes.
Father greets her with a smile
and a big kiss
Suffering from depression a pill:
Paxil is her fate
psychologist praises the
cure as a real miracle
her health declines and the miracle cure,
a pill
assures her symptoms; a child
normal reaction.
The child normal before the wonder
drug: Paxil
It is normal to change, afterall, she
is a teenager.
Medicating the only solution to
bind her fate
a solution for a troubled teenager:
doped and ill
easily controlled; anti
depressant a miracle cure
like any child changing is normal
for a teenager.
One day soon; a ghastly darkness
blankets her life
a precious daughter who
had so much life to give
no one to turn to but
a pill to treat her smile lost
a life stolen; a pill
sold in a pretty pink package
magic to treat shyness
for troubled teen behavior
failed to treat the root of
the problem a pill is given
and weep each day
for her memory; a lovely girl.
So gifted was she, her saxophone all lost
in a pill
no where to escape from the horrors
of her mind,
to lead her the way; a rope around her small
neck
a chair to find release from
"Paxil",a harlot's cure.
.**********************************
PROPAGANDA: PROSPERITY
IN SELLING SICKNESS
A Poem:
Harlot of Pharma
A Harlot dressed in
linen and fine jewels,
her body perfumed with exotic
ointments
lips outlined with bright red and cinnamon
her tongue dipped in gold and silver
liquid
hips curved placing one hand on her thigh
her hands in thanks embracing gold
coins
for selling her pretty pills
in pink packages
her hand waves promise to return soon
A Harlot "selling sickness" is her Trade.
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