Joan Cleary, Vice President, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation
Large numbers of Americans experience higher rates of illness and premature death for reasons that go beyond access to health care, lifestyle choices, and genetics. And yet, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. spends more than 90 percent of its health budget on downstream, individual medical care. Only 8 percent is spent on community and societal conditions that affect health. While we must continue to improve health care quality and outcomes for all through health systems changes and lifestyle interventions, focusing more attention upstream can yield significant health improvements.
1/22/2007 — 271KB