As I read this book, it’s as if Khanna had Milton Friedman in his right ear, and Ralph Nader in his left. That, and he delivers information like it was coming out of a high-powered fire hose, which gives one the feeling of being whiplashed, while experiencing 9 Gs of force. By the time I got through the Introduction, I was at my maximum exercise heart rate.
As you read this, you might think the author is exaggerating (or has completely lost his mind). I urge you to take a look at the actual ACA law (when you have a couple spare years). Just don’t hit the print button and leave the house. It’s almost 11,000 pages, (about 11.5 million words). Hey, what could go wrong?
Khanna highlights a few things that have been going wrong in healthcare, and are now accelerating — corruption... crony capitalism... lack of transparency... collusion... higher cost... rationing care... higher taxes... poor to harmful care... bad health outcomes... and a distorted U.S. economy. He touches on all these issues with convincing data and true stories. He’s lived in the beast. He says, “... because for the past 30 years, I have seen the American healthcare industry from the inside out.” And then it hit me. Of the handful of people I know who work in the healthcare industry, almost all of them sound like Khanna when they talk about their frustrations and outrage. And they all have the same frustrations and outrage about the things he exposes.
The point Khanna and other ACA critics seem to be making is this:
The U.S. healthcare system is totally screwed up and corrupt, and the ACA law reinforces that bad behavior -- because it was actually written by the lobbyists whose industries benefit the most from it. All at the expense of patients and the U.S. taxpayer.
Khanna does acknowledge the ACA has some good aspects. He agrees that eliminating pre-existing condition clauses, making your benefits portable, and offering more people healthcare coverage is all good and was needed. As he explains however, the ACA addressed these issues like a homeowner who needs new carpet but replaces the whole house instead.
From my perspective, I’d organize Khanna’s book into five main themes:
1. How to survive the U.S. healthcare system primarily by avoiding it.
2. Why personal physical fitness trumps everything else in health.
3. “Eat less. Eat less crap.” (pg.6)
4. The power of personal responsibility.
5. Get off your lazy ass! (Another possible title for this book.)
Khanna also wastes no time in getting at one of the key, underlying problems in why ordinary people put up with a corrupt healthcare system. He’s one of the few who understands the folly of the healthcare industry using relative risk instead of real risk to explain treatment options.
The author explains, “... media reports exclaim a study’s 50 percent (!) reduction in mortality (a reduction in relative risk), without disclosing that the actual death rate for a particular problem was only 2 per 1,000 (0.2 percent) to begin with, meaning that absolute risk of death after the intervention is now 1 per 1,000 (0.1 percent).” Using relative risk instead of real risk in healthcare communication is a distinction with a giant difference, and it does not get by Khanna. That tells me he’s a smart cookie. And he’s a tough. He’s got a no B.S., no P.C. presentation style.
He says, “Victim wannabes will not like this book… Health is not a medical product; it is your (birth) right, but like all inalienable human rights, it is exercised fruitfully only with serious attention to its attendant responsibilities.”
The book also has a big dose of personal tips for improving your physical fitness, mental toughness, and how you eat. The personal stuff is a little too prescriptive for me, but Khanna pulls back the curtain on his life and lets you peek inside. That insight frames his style, and makes the specific, to-dos and not to-dos more tolerable and relevant.
In fact, Khanna is at an elite fitness level for his age (late 50s), so it’s interesting and informative to learn what goes on in his head to accomplish that status. He thinks if he can do it, you can too. If you survived the Introduction of this book, you might be able to do so.
There is, however, an aspect of “tough love” in his message. He’s passionate, and he cares about you and your potential to live a life in health. It’s like getting a hug from a battle hardened, Marine drill Sergeant. Khanna says, “A lot of what you should be doing for yourself is physical but the biggest challenge you’ll have to overcome is believing you are tough enough to create health with the propulsive force of your own intelligence and imagination.”
He probably walks around singing “Lean On Me” all day, while wearing his favorite t-shirt, which reads, “I work mine off so I can kick yours” on the back. It makes for a very interesting read. And at the end, you’ll learn that Khanna does balance that yin and yang in a unique way.
In a world that does not always have your best interest in mind, you’ve got a sincere advocate in Vik Khanna. Read this book.
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