THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE FAVOR INDIVIDUAL CARE OVER PUBLIC HEALTH

AS AMERICANS WATCH DIRE predictions of 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the United States materialize around us, those who have studied this country’s health care system see the causes of the catastrophe as rooted in decades of policy decisions that prioritize medical care for individuals at the expense of public health.

The US has more critical care beds per capita than any other industrialized country and about 20 mechanical ventilators per 100,000 people, and it still may not be enough. Most