We know for sure that if we don't change the current system it is going to cost us more and more each year. Over the past 5 years the cost of health care has increased:

• 5.5 times as fast as general inflation;
• 4.0 times as fast as worker's wages; and
  
• 2.3 times as fast as business income growth.

Today, the cost of health insurance for the average family is $10,800 a year, which exceeds the annual salary of a full time minimum wage worker. The average amount that Americans pay in health insurance premiums has risen 73% since 2000, while workers wages have only risen 20% in that same period of time. We Can Do Better.

Part of this increase is due to the fact that those without insurance often get their care through the emergency room where costs are much higher. And these costs are then shifted to people with insurance through increases in the premiums they pay. Ensuring that everyone has timely access to needed care will help reduce this cost shift.

Cost can also be reduced by putting a much higher priority on wellness and disease prevention; by more thoughtfully defining what we mean by a heath care "benefit;" and by changing the inefficient system through which health care is delivered.