At present, according to an Institute of Medicine study, 18,000 Americans die every year because they are uninsured and can't get proper health care.
I think "no one should go broke because they get sick" was originally said by the WaPo columnist Stephen Pearlstein in a Live Online chat, but I can't find it. You'll just have to take my word for it. It's been amplified:
No one should die because they cannot afford health care, and no one should go broke because they get sick. No one should be unable to change jobs because of a “pre-existing condition” or fear of losing health care.Words to live by. Posted by Linkmeister at September 4, 2009 11:01 AM | TrackBack