cover image The American Way of Health: How Medicine Is Changing and What It Means to You

The American Way of Health: How Medicine Is Changing and What It Means to You

Janice Castro, Castro. Little Brown and Company, $19.95 (282pp) ISBN 978-0-316-13272-5

Castro, a Time staffer, presents a balanced, well-written, easy-to-understand and very timely look at health care in America. Equally important, she tries to educate readers so they can better understand what makes a health care system work--and to grasp what options they already have. In explaining why the American health care system has been successful--and why it costs so much--she emphasizes that guaranteeing universal coverage will not solve every one of any system's problems. She argues that guaranteed coverage may not necessarily make us healthier, and that when medicine fails us, the fault may not lie with a malpracticing doctor. Castro also stresses that medicine is too important and personal to be left to the judgment of economists and politicians. Many special-interest groups--and consumers themselves--believe, with reason, that changes are necessary, and she surveys their concerns while answering questions about the Clinton plan and others. She notes that health care may be the most important and complex legislative issue in a generation, with changes in the air that may redefine the American way of health. This year, Castro believes, is the most critical for health reform legislation--one more reason for the timeliness of her book. (May)