America's Two Healthcare Systems

The U.S. Census Bureau reported this morning that the number of uninsured Americans has risen again, to 47 million in 2006, up from 44.8 million a year earlier. That's 15.8 percent of the population -- nearly one in six Americans. That figure has been increasing since 2000, and there is every reason to think it will continue to climb.

Why do so many Americans still think we have a perfectly fine health care system? Have they never filed a claim? Have they never had a question about a bill? Have they never had to fight for coverage of a so-called pre-existing condition? Have they never been surprised by a large co-payment at the drug store because their doctors was foolish enough to prescribe a brand-name drug? Who are these people? And where are they getting their health care? Because they clearly must have a better arrangement than I do.

The Kaiser Family Foundation released a poll yesterday looking at public perceptions of health care in the wake of Michael Moore's documentary critique of the healthcare system, SiCKO. Of those who had seen the movie or heard about it, 43 percent said they were more likely to see a need to reform U.S. health care. Nearly as many were more likely to think other countries had better health care than the U.S.

But, astonishingly, health insurers, drug companies, and HMOs -- three of the organizations that need reforming -- were still viewed favorably by about half the American public.

It's actually not as astonishing as it might seem, when we realize that we have two health-care systems in this country -- one for the middle- and upper-classes, and another one for the poor.

The question is: How long can we watch our less fortunate citizens, including the growing numbers of uninsured, die young and suffer a disproportionate share of infant mortality?

How long can we tolerate two health care systems, one that works, and one that doesn't?