1105. Paying the Price: Unraveling the High Cost of Chronic Illness

An article from the Center for Disease Control is saying that nearly half of all Americans have a chronic disease, and what's worse is that 40% of kids and adolescents already have a chronic disease. According to the CDC, the American healthcare system, which is a disease care system just like in Canada, spends 4.1 trillion dollars a year and 90% of that goes to treating chronic disease. You know how much is spent on prevention? Pennies comparatively to these numbers. Dr. Martin says we’re going down the wrong path because we're not trying to prevent disease. We’re already paying the price for “looking for love in the wrong places,” like Dr. Martin often says. He’s not optimistic that things will change anytime soon.