Finally, with reform efforts intensifying in the U.S., we are beginning to understand that a health care system that treats us only after we get sick is too high a price to pay both for the long term health of Americans and for our wallets.
Health care spending is now more than 17% of GDP. With our population aging, demand for care will increase. Obesity and chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, are reaching alarming rates among Americans of all ages. In a recent study, patients with chronic diseases, on average, had 38 physician visits and received 50 prescriptions in a single year.
Preventing illness is the better option to improve our quality of life and stem spiraling health care costs. Studies show that when someone has a comprehensive primary care provider as their usual source of care, their medical care costs one-third less and they have a 19% lower mortality rate.
Our government is recognizing that our ability to improve primary care and obtain better health outcomes are closely linked to meaningful reform. We've seen that prevention and wellness programs can reduce expensive emergency room care and free up doctors to spend more time with patients to keep them healthy.
The notion of comprehensive primary physician-based care that creates a "medical home" has also been proven to reduce a patient's medical bills because it avoids expensive, unnecessary medical tests and procedures. That's more crucial than ever: according to a study published online by the American Journal of Medicine, 60% of all bankruptcies in the United States in 2007 were driven by health care costs.
We're already seeing this new model of care in action around the U.S. For example, Community Care of North Carolina, which has medical homes for Medicaid patients, has reportedly reduced medical costs by $160 million per year, hospital admissions by 40%, and improved diabetes care by 15%.
Health care technology is also an important tool to connect critical health information and promote collaborative care. By integrating IT into patient care, many doctors and hospitals are delivering better care and achieving better results. Geisinger Health System, Kaiser Permanente, the Mayo Clinic and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center are examples of the quality that can be achieved by using an integrated, holistic approach to medicine. Digitized records may be just the stimulus we need to shift the focus of our entire system toward wellness and health and away from "sick" care.
Ultimately, the states will decide how the $20 billion in health care stimulus funds will be spent on this 21st century digital revolution, allowing small medical practices, clinics and hospitals to computerize and share medical records. This will drive demand for software and IT services as well for home medical devices, broadband, and related services. Given the stimulus bill, Michigan or Ohio could produce health technology versions of Silicon Valley, and jobs could be created in the U.S. for a long-term market opportunity.
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