Why do more Americans oppose Obamacare than support it? “Most Americans don’t want to be forced to take on insurance,” says Dr. Scott Atlas, a radiologist and professor at Stanford University. But, he goes on, the problems are much worse than that and the more one learns about the current quality of health care in the United States, the more wary one becomes of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Atlas is in town promoting his new book, In Excellent Health: Setting the Record Straight on America’s Health Care—recommended reading for all, but especially lawmakers and aspiring presidential candidates.

I just received the book (the timing couldn’t be better), but Atlas provided an in-depth presentation at a lunch today sponsored by the Hoover Institution. And before the author could answer questions about the Supreme Court’s impending decision and why costs for health care are going up and not down, Atlas first turned to the World Health Report of 2000, which continues to lead many to believe the United States lags in health care, with 35 countries ranked ahead of it. The report also put life expectancy in this country at 42nd in the world. And why is infant mortality so high?