We live in an upside-down world when it comes to our health. In the United States our pharmaceutical companies have a huge influence over our economy when it comes to stocks and investments. Huge. If there wasn’t a need for drugs, there wouldn’t be a need for pharmaceutical companies, and our economy would in essence crash. So, we need the drug companies. Not just for the drugs themselves, but for our economy. Today, the global pharmaceutical market is very big business, with annual revenues expected to top $1.5 trillion in 2023, according to the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations. (https://www.bankrate.com/investing/big-pharma-investing-guide-facts-and-figures/).
Our food industry is another huge economy player. And I say “food” lightly, because in essence, it’s really not even food. At best, we can call the vast majority of the products that fill our grocery store shelves “food-like-substances.” Recent research from Northeastern University’s Network Science Institute indicates that “73 percent of the United States food supply is ultra-processed.” (https://foodtank.com/news/2022/11/database-indicates-u-s-food-supply-is-73-percent-ultra-processed/).
In comparison, fresh produce makes up only approximately 10%. And not only is it not real food, lacking in any kind of nutritional value, it’s worse than that. Those products are filled with toxic substances – sugars to name one for starters. The majority of Americans are consuming these food-like-substances on a regular basis, causing their bodies to be toxic and well, sick. Sick enough to need, you guessed it, drugs. And let’s not forget the fast food industry and restaurants that serve up the same toxic, food-like substances. They just prepare it for you, serve you twice as much as you would fix for yourself at home, charge 3 times what it would cost you to buy it and prepare it yourself.
Then there is another huge player to any local economy. Hospitals. You look at almost any mid to large size town or city and who is one of their largest employers? The hospital. What would happen to the employment rate if there was no need for hospitals? You guessed it, it too would tank.
And yet industries like hospitals and food manufacturing, and even the drug companies will use the words health, wellness, prevention etc. to describe their benefits to you as if they really understood what health is. Most people still believe that drug companies are losing sleep for you by continuing to find a “cure for cancer.” Either we have the dumbest researchers, or the most gullible society.
Then there are the medical insurance companies (I won’t call them “health” insurance, because they are not). “The United States has one of the highest costs of healthcare in the world. In 2021, U.S. healthcare spending reached $4.3 trillion, which averages to about $12,900 per person.” (https://www.pgpf.org/blog/2023/07/why-are-americans-paying-more-for-healthcare).
Truthfully, this number seems low. As I continued to try and search for some valid statistics on the cost of medical insurance, the hole just kept getting deeper. First of all, the above statistics says “healthcare” spending. Does that include out of pocket, premiums, those who pay to take care of their health outside of the medical profession, the employer’s portion, what, what does it include?
According to some reports, medical expenses are the number one reason for two thirds of people filing for bankruptcy. While $12,900 is a lot of money, it seems like it would take a whole lot more than that to cause someone to go bankrupt. Just the number of people alone who are plagued with cancer each year, it has to cost more than $12,900 a year. I will be transparent here for a moment and share with you how much it cost for me to have insurance and pay for things out of pocket in just the past 7-1/2 months: I have Medishare, a health sharing plan that I pay a monthly premium to; 4 visits to a hematologist, several consults with my functional medicine doctor; a bone marrow biopsy in May, a slew of supplements; and I am currently in the middle of hyperbaric chamber treatments to address the root cause of some health challenges, using natural approaches. So far, this year? Over $17,000. And Medishare paid another $4,300. That’s over $20,000 in less than 8 months. And I present as a cash patient. These expenses that were charged by the hematologist and hospital would have been at least 4 times as high if billed to an insurance company and they would pay. And I am a fairly healthy individual, who takes care of her health, without serious health problems and I take no prescription medications. I’m sure those numbers reported in the above statistic is not even touching the tip of the iceberg of what people really spend on “healthcare.”
Now before I go any further with this discussion, let me point out I am almost always talking about the 70-80% of diseases that plague our country these days that are self-induced – preventable. The chronic, degenerative diseases. Yes, there certainly is a time and place, and need for pharmaceutical drugs, hospitals and medical insurance. But like a lot of things these days, these benefits have been abused and taken advantage of by both – the consumer and the provider.
So, what is my point in bringing all of this to your attention? It cost a LOT of money to not take care of our health and pursue the conventional medical model. Three quarters of my expenses this year were paid out to a conventional medicine practitioner. And these costs were solely running tests, no treatment! The majority of my medical expenses this year went to conventional medicine. Only a quarter of my expenses are being spent getting to the root cause and healing my body.
While it may seem that you are barely paying anything pursuing the conventional medicine approach because you have insurance, think again. We ALL pay every time insurance is utilized by anyone. We pay it collectively, in our insurance premiums. We pay it in our taxes for Medicare and Medicaid. We pay. The insurance companies don’t pay. They are making billions of dollars in profit every year. The hospitals don’t pay, they too make huge profits. And the drug companies certainly don’t pay. We pay. You. And me.
I realize my tone is a little more harsh today than usual (I usually try and tone it down!), but far too many people are being manipulated and deceived into believing “sick care” is the only option they have – because the hospitals, insurance companies and big pharma make people think that is the only way. And that it’s the most affordable way to go. It’s NOT! Getting to the root cause of the problem, and restoring the body back to good health using natural approaches is the much more affordable way to go. Stop eating processed foods, sugars, fast food & fried food. Drink water, not sodas. Exercise. Get enough sleep. And have your spines checked on a routine basis. Take care of your health and minimize tremendously the need for sick care. Your health, IS your insurance.
But sadly, we are in an “upside down world.”
To learn more on how to reverse these trends, check out my book “Are You Being Deceived About True Wellness” https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C8RFBX87/ or go to my website at: www.jackiemckool.com