T.R. Reid begins The Healing of America with the premise that a nation’s health care system is a reflection of it’s basic moral values. Instead of dry lists of statistics or muddled ranting he offers an insightful journey through the four basic models of health care delivery and how they are practiced around the world. He uses an old shoulder injury causing pain and limited range of motion as the vehicle to compare how health care is provided in Europe, Asia and the United States. He not only talks with the doctors he sees, but other patients, people in government and related health care fields. He suggests possible alternatives to the current state of American health care in a well reasoned, organized manner. By offering examples that include the things that are satisfactory as well as those that are not, he shows how other systems change and adjust over time. No system is perfect, but other systems deliver more and better care for less money than the American system, and leave no one at risk of death or financial ruin due to lack of insurance. It is a pleasure to read this book, both for style and content. ~Marla Vandewater