All that money we pay for health care in developed nations
does pay off.
According to a very interesting study (PURE study) from
the world-class researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton that compared
how people with heart disease fared around the world, people in developed
nations have more key risk factors for heart disease than people in less
developed nations, which is not that much of a surprise, I think.
What is surprising, though, is that despite their more
common and more severe risk factors, people in more developed nations have on
average significantly less severe cardiovascular disease than people who live
in less well developed nations.
Why?
Well, these researchers speculate that it’s our better
access to good quality health care, which among many other benefits means more
emphasis on treating early forms of heart disease, such as, for example, early
and easy access to drugs like statins.
Anyway, it’s nice to know that we’re getting something back
for all that money we spend, although it’s pretty easy to see that we could
still do a much better job of managing those expenses.
