What's wrong with health care

I'd like to share an experience I had that I think illustrates a large part of what is wrong with health care in the US:

I volunteer in an Emergency Room. Recently a woman brought her 2 year old son into the E.R. because he had a fever. The doctor examined the child, and based on his medical training he concluded that the child was in good health, that he just had some sort of systemic infection, and that if he weresimply given tylenol to break the fever his body would capably fight off the disease.

However, this doctor was not so naive as to think that in today's world his opinion would be very strong self-defense. He knew that if the child were to die 3 years later from an unrelated disease and he had not checked for every possible malady, he could very well lose everything he owns in a legal battle having nothing to do with doing justice on an incompetent doctor, but instead, everything to do with pushing the limits of the judicial system's indulgence toward people greedily seeking something for nothing - the "get rich quick."

So, in the interest of self preservation, the doctor ordered an MRI and blood work done on the child. All tests came back negative just as the doctor knew they would, but now he was covered. The woman was unable to pay for the E.R. visit and had no insurance. As a result, after this slew of expenses manifest in tests, equipment, and the time of medical personel, the doctor handed the woman a $3000 bottle of tylenol for which she would not pay one penny, and instructed her to give it to the child until his fever broke. He added, "There is a Rite-Aid across the street. Next time this happens, just buy your child some tylenol. It will cost you $5." To which she responded, "Why would I get it there when I can get it here for free?"