Sophia C. reviewed on 3/31/2010 + 289 more book reviews

When I was taking a Comparative Health Policy course at the London School of Economics, being American meant I was on the receiving end of a lot of snide remarks from classmates from all over the world. The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Public Health very succinctly explains why: compared to other wealthy industrialized democracies, American health care ranks near the bottom in terms of coverage, quality, and cost. Washington Post correspondent T.R. Reid argues that the first question a nation seeking to build or reform its health care system is a moral one: Does its citizens have a right to health care? If the collective American answer is "yes," Reid has gathered many examples from around the world from which the United States can benefit. He categorizes health care systems into four types and visits countries around the world that fit into each one (The United States is a complex hodgepodge of all four.) While quickly outlining the history and the structure of health care systems from Britain to France, Germany to Japan, Canada to Switzerland, Reid also compares how each system would treat his stiff shoulder. The result is a myth-busting, eye-opening account which is worthwhile reading regardless of one's opinion or understanding of the recent health care reform movement of 2009-2010. Although repetitive and simplified at times, it's definitely a good shortcut to the two feet pile of photocopied required reading for my course.

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