An article on American health care which focuses on health care costs and benefits is combined with a lesson plan on health care issues to enable students to consider both issues of cost effectiveness and morality in decisions about the allocation of health care. The article covers the history of interest in health care, the reasons for the increase in costs, benefits of health care expenditures, and questions for the future. The lesson plan, which is designed for grades 11 and 12, takes two class periods. It includes major concepts, rationale, instructional objectives, materials, and student activities. Various topics of discussion, based on the article, are suggested. Student activities include making a decision about alternative forms of health care and selecting which one of five patients should receive a kidney transplant. (IS)