1. Statistical results of being treated by medical doctors in a hospital: ALL THESE ARE DEATHS PER YEAR: 12,000 -- unnecessary surgery 7,000 -- medication errors in hospitals 20,000 -- other errors in hospitals 80,000 -- infections in hospitals 106,000 -- non-error, negative effects of drugs These total to 225,000 deaths per year from iatrogenic causes!!  225,000 deaths per year constitutes the third leading cause of death in the United States, after deaths from heart disease and cancer.  Source: JAMA Oct. 2000

2.  116 million extra physician visits  77 million extra prescriptions  17 million emergency department visits  8 million hospitalizations  3 million long-term admissions  199,000 additional deaths  $77 billion in extra costs  Source: JAMA, 7-26-2000 vol. 284, #4

3. For 16 available health indicators, the US ranks on average 12th out of 13 industrial countries. Ranking first is Japan followed by Sweden, Canada, France, Australia, Spain, Finland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Belgium, the United States, and Germany. For three of the indicators, the US ranks dead last: low-birth-weight percentages, overall neonatal and infant mortality, and years of potential life lost. Jama, July 26, 2000

4. 1 France 2 Italy 3 San Marino 4 Andorra 5 Malta 6 Singapore 7 Spain 8 Oman 9 Austria 10 Japan 11 Norway 12 Portugal 13 Monaco 14 Greece 15 Iceland 16 Luxembourg 17 Netherlands 18 United Kingdom 19 Ireland 20 Switzerland 21 Belgium 22 Colombia 23 Sweden 24 Cyprus 25 Germany 26 Saudi Arabia 27 United Arab Emirates 28 Israel 29 Morocco 30 Canada 31 Finland 32 Australia 33 Chile 34 Denmark 35 Dominica 36 Costa Rica 37 United States of America 38 Slovenia 39 Cuba 40 Brunei 41 New Zealand 42 Bahrain 43 Croatia 44 Qatar 45 Kuwait 46 Barbados 47 Thailand 48 Czech Republic 49 Malaysia 50 Poland