The Truth About Health Care: Why Reform Is Not Working in America

by Mechanic, David

• ISBN13: 9780813538877
• ISBN10: 0813538874
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-09-25
• Publisher: Rutgers Univ Pr

Summary

"In The Truth about Health Care, David Mechanic explains how health care in America has evolved in ways that favor a myriad of economic, professional, and political interests over those of patients. While money has always had a place in medical care, "big money" and the quest for profits has become dominant, making meaningful reforms difficult to achieve. Mechanic acknowledges that railing against these influences, which are here to stay, can achieve only so much. Instead, he asks whether it is possible to convert what is best about health care in America into a well functioning system that better serves the entire population."--BOOK JACKET.

Author Biography

David Mechanic is director of the Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research at Rutgers University and the national program director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Investigator Awards in Health Policy Research.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Introduction	1	(16)
Part I Our Health Dilemma	17	(96)
Chapter 1 Is Reform Possible? The Need for Change and the Forces Against It	19	(20)
Chapter 2 What Is Disease and What Should We Treat?	39	(12)
Chapter 3 Saving Lives Individually or in Populations	51	(16)
Chapter 4 The Murky Challenge of Mental Health	67	(17)
Chapter 5 The Activated Patient and the Doctors' Dilemma	84	(16)
Chapter 6 The Neglect of Long-Term Care	100	(13)
Part II The Struggle for Solutions	113	(46)
Chapter 7 The Quest for Quality	115	(15)
Chapter 8 Setting Fair Limits	130	(13)
Chapter 9 Restoring Trust in the Health System	143	(16)
Part III The Fork in the Road	159	(30)
Chapter 10 The Challenge of Change	161	(18)
Chapter 11 Steps in Our Health Future	179	(10)
Notes	189	(22)
Index	211