Soaring medical costs have afflicted the workers' compensation industry with economic distress and have severely impacted the efficient and effective delivery of medical care to injured workers. Both increased costs/profits and a related spike in mortality addresses the need for more governmental control in the United States. A study "...found that patients’ mortality rates spiked when nonprofit hospitals switched to become profit-making, and their staff levels declined." Read "Health Care and Profits, a Poor Mix" NYTimes