Virtually everyone agrees that the US health care system is broken. We spend twice as much per person on health care as do other industrialized countries. Yet, in the richest country in the world, approximately 31 million Americans have no health coverage. An estimated 45,000 Americans die each year because they forego treatment due to lack of health insurance. Approximately 50% of personal bankruptcies in the US stem from high medical bills.
Why are healthcare costs so high? A big part of the problem is the 20-30% overhead costs associated with insurance companies, including excessive CEO salaries, marketing and profit.
As an advocate for energy policies that protect the environment and low-income consumers, CITIZEN POWER has learned a great deal about how public policy is developed and implemented. We understand the challenges of trying to change long-standing policies that are supported by powerful interests. We have decided to utilize what we have learned from this experience to make a contribution toward health care reform in ways not currently being done.
We have short-term objectives that we work to achieve as part of the process to reach our long-term goal. These include expanding the number of Americans who have health insurance and ensuring that health insurance meets the healthcare needs of everyone while being affordable for all. The long-term goal is the establishment of a non-profit, single-payer, universal health care system in the United States. A streamlined financing arrangement that will resolve many of the problems associated with our current health care system.