Market-driven health care at odds with effective pandemic response By Dr. Robert Devereau The failings of an American health care system that is based on free-market principles have been laid bare by the worst pandemic the country has faced in 100 years. Most of us are familiar with the statistics that demonstrate that the U.S. has lagged far behind other industrialized countries in our ability to mount a coordinated response to the virus. We are near the top of the list for number of cases and deaths as a share of the population when compared to most developed countries. Compared to Canada we have had twice the death rate and a seven-day average of new cases that is nearly four times higher according to data from Johns Hopkins.