Health care (or healthcare) is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers. It refers to the work done in providing primary care, secondary care and tertiary care, as well as in public health.

Access to health care varies across countries, groups and individuals, largely influenced by social and economic conditions as well as the health policies in place. Countries and jurisdictions have different policies and plans in relation to the personal and population-based health care goals within their societies. Health care systems are organizations established to meet the health needs of target populations. Their exact configuration varies from country to country. In some countries and jurisdictions, health care planning is distributed among market participants, whereas in others planning is made more centrally among governments or other coordinating bodies. In all cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), a well-functioning health care system requires a robust financing mechanism; a well-trained and adequately-paid workforce; reliable information on which to base decisions and policies; and well maintained facilities and logistics to deliver quality medicines and technologies.

David Goldhill is the president and CEO of the Game Show Network. Prior to this position, he was the president of the Universal Television Group.

David Goldhill's article in The Atlantic was the cover story for its September 2009 issue. In it, he argues that the result of dysfunction in the health care sector in the United States is because markets in the health care sector are not being allowed to function properly. He advocates mandatory accounts into which people would pay a minimum percentage of their income every year. People would receive government coverage for truly catastrophic, unforeseen medical emergencies and procedures, such as those costing more than $50,000. Foreseeable medical procedures, such as pregnancy and end-of-life care, would be paid for from the individual savings accounts.

Despite being a Democrat, his article received praise from conservative news outlet The Weekly Standard and the libertarian think-tank the Cato Institute.

Karl Lauterbach (born February 21, 1963 in Düren) is a German scientist and politician (SPD). He is professor of health economics and epidemiology at the University of Cologne.

Lauterbach studied human medicine in Aachen, Düsseldorf and San Antonio (Texas). From 1989-1992 he has studied health policy and management as well as epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, graduating with a Doctor of Science in 1992. From 1992 - 1993 he has held a fellowship at the Harvard Medical School.

Since 1998 Lauterbach has been director of the institute of health economy and clinical epidemiology at the University of Cologne, and he was appointed adjunct professor at the Harvard School of Public Health in 2008. He was a member of the Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der Entwicklung im Gesundheitswesen ("Council of Experts for the development of health system") from 1999 until he was elected into the Bundestag in September 2005. He also was a member of the Rürup-Kommission, a committee of experts that was established to review the financing of the social insurance systems.