Book: Shattered Lives: 100 Victims of Government Health Care

Shattered Lives

“…Shattered Lives will educate you, the American public, to the horror of government-managed health care where it exists today.

In this book are documented stories from Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Japan, Australia and elsewhere – countries in which citizens literally die waiting for health services.  Among other horrifying takes, you will cringe over tales of expectant mothers unable to find an available hospital bed, elderly patients denied routine cataract surgery and people in agony who resorted to do-it-yourself dentistry.

These tragic stories warn us that turning more of our health care decisions over to the government is sure to bring us nothing but pain.”
-Mark R. Levin, Host, The Mark Levin Show
Author, The Liberty Amendments, and other bestselling books

“Anyone who believes that nationalized health care equals quality health care needs to read these real-life horror stories of people denied care or forced to wait months for urgently-needed medical treatment because they live in countries with nationalized health care.”
— Congressman Ron Paul, M.D. (Retired)

“On a good day the practice of medicine is demanding and difficult. A bad day can range from frustrating to terrifying. An active clinical practice deals with cases that run the spectrum of complex to impossible-yet all the while physicians and nurses put forth their best efforts as is appropriate to their ability.  To take this already demanding lifestyle and further complicate it by insensitive government control and regime insults the integrity of every provider-and places the patient in even greater peril.  This is a powerful book, and one that should be regarded and read by every elected official who believes he or she has the gift to change medical practice to suit the whim of the government.”
— Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX)

“Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans are satisfied with the quality of the health care they receive. “Shattered Lives” provides strong evidence that the more we turn over health care decisions to the government, the less satisfied we will be.”
— Paul Mirengoff, Power Line Blog

“While in most parts of the world private health care is an option, government in my native Canada holds a death grip. Government there legally forbids millions of people in most parts of Canada from buying private health care.  Some of them choose to get their health care outside Canada.  Shattered Lives tells the stories of several of these health care refugees and warns why a centralized, government-managed approach is how not to fix health care in America-or anywhere else.”
— David R. Henderson
Research Fellow, Hoover Institution

“Shattered Lives shows the ugly realities of statist medicine its acolytes don’t want you to know. I applaud The National Center for warning the American people that a government takeover, whether slow or accelerated, is not the answer for improving our health care system.”
— Tom Blumer
BizzyBlog, NewsBusters.org

“Shattered Lives provides a sharp reminder that government mismanagement of health care has high human costs not only in a developing country like South Africa, but in rich countries too. This is because it’s not just about money, but incentives and choice.”
— Jack Bloom, MPL
Health Spokesman, Democratic Alliance Party
Gauteng Provincial Legislature, South Africa



The National Center for Public Policy Research is a communications and research foundation supportive of a strong national defense and dedicated to providing free market solutions to today’s public policy problems. We believe that the principles of a free market, individual liberty and personal responsibility provide the greatest hope for meeting the challenges facing America in the 21st century.