Three More Ways Russia Has A Healthier Lifestyle Than The United States

There are many examples of how the Western press simply does not report the situation in Russia accurately. Take, for instance, the issue of death rates in Russia. In 2003, the death rate among Russians was a little over 16 per 1,000 people. In 2014, it was between 13 and 14 per 1,000 people. The headline in Forbes magazine? "Russia's Death Rate is Soaring." Forbes and other biased publications aren't likely to report information like this:

When the Soviet Union dissolved into its constituent republics, the relative ranking of "Russia" among the populations of the world naturally fell, drastically, from about 300,000,000 to 150,000,000. The press in the United States, seeing the difficulties of the transition away from Communism in the 1990's, reports this statistic as if it were the result of the deaths of 150,000,000, with Russia as some kind of freakish dystopia where people have lost the will to live.

 

 

That simply is not the case. In fact, women now have more babies in Russia than in the United States. In 2012, the live birthrate in Russia passed above 13 babies per 1,000 people and continues to rise. Also in 2012, the live birthrate in the United States passed below 13 babies per 1,000 people and continues to fall. This doesn't mean that the average age of the population in Russia will not continue to rise, just as it will in the United States. However, the comparison of Russia to a "dying bear" in the American press seems, on the basis of the numbers, to be inept.

The reality is, it can be dangerous to be on the road in Russia. Nationwide, there are 18.6 deaths per 100,000 people every year. Ice, snow, poor weather conditions, and the difficulties of maintaining the tarmac in places where winter lasts eight and nine months of the year take their toll.

 

However, this does not mean that Russians are a gaggle of vodka-soaked drivers in broken-down cars. Let's consider the Alaskan example. Alaska has far fewer roads than Russia, so most of its travel, outside its meager and small cities, involves planes. The death rate among Alaskan plane travelers is 20 per 100,000 people every year. It is more dangerous to ride in a plane in Alaska than it is to ride in a car in Russia.

If you don't have health insurance in the United States, you are in a world of trouble. If you need a heart procedure, too bad, put up cash or go home and die. If you need chemotherapy for cancer and you don't have healthcare coverage, hope and pray some kindly doctor or some pharmaceutical company benevolence program will take care of you.

 

Frankly, hospitals in Russia don't have everything that can be found in hospitals in America. However, there is one important difference. In Russia, if they have it, and you need it, they will give it to you. In America, it's a matter of how much you or your insurers will pay.