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Too much demand, not enough 'goods'. So hearts go to the younger. In most emergent/urgent medical situations the younger patients have preference.
I know how it works. I just don't think it has to be that way. First, more people could consider being organ donors. That would be a good place to start.
But all of those people will acknowledge that those systems are in need of some changes and reforms.
The NHS may do it's job of addressing people with life threatening medical issues but changes need to come for those suffering with non life threatening issues. Just because a medical problem isn't life threatening doesn't mean people aren't still suffering and waiting too long for treatments.
I am not saying this is a desirable state of affairs, but what the heck do you think happens to people here who need such surgery and have no insurance? They don't even get on a waiting list.
First, when we discuss free market vs universal health care, the examples used are always the UK NHS or the Canadian system. However, they are not the only models. The Germans, for example, have a very successful UHC system based on health insurance which is cheaper than the US system and offers better outcomes.
Second, a free market simply doesn't work for health care. When you run health care through any of the market or competition models it fails. The competitive advantage is so heavily skewed towards healthcare providers and the power of consumers so weak that what we have, effectively, is a health care monopoly. In these circumstances, the only other option is for the government to regulate health care provision in the public interest and not for special interests.
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Originally Posted by Motion
But all of those people will acknowledge that those systems are in need of some changes and reforms.
The NHS may do it's job of addressing people with life threatening medical issues but changes need to come for those suffering with non life threatening issues. Just because a medical problem isn't life threatening doesn't mean people aren't still suffering and waiting too long for treatments.
As already stated the NHS sees over 1 million people every 36 hours, and carries out over 7 million operations a year and those on waiting lists will be seen and operated on even if this is not within the 18 week targets.
It also should be noted that private health care insurance for such routine operations is readily available and there are private hospitals throughout the UK.
So we have both systems.
The NHS obviously needs more resources as more pressure is put on it in relation to an increasing and ageing population, and most people according to polls would be happy to pay increased levels of national insurance or slightly higher rates of income tax to pay for this.
This statement is a good example of why there should be an IQ test for voting.
I am sure Milton Friedman's IQ far exceeded your own.
Eliminate licensing requirements for medical professionals and watch healthcare costs fall. We have high healthcare costs because we subsidize demand and limit supply.
The title of this thread is "Free Market vs Universal Health Care". We do not have Free Market healthcare. I propose we move strongly in that direction.
I am sure Milton Friedman's IQ far exceeded your own.
Eliminate licensing requirements for medical professionals and watch healthcare costs fall. We have high healthcare costs because we subsidize demand and limit supply.
The title of this thread is "Free Market vs Universal Health Care". We do not have Free Market healthcare. I propose we move strongly in that direction.
Produce more HC delivery professionals, and then more HC appointment slots, and then more medical encounters, and then more medical stuff gets done.
In most cases more docs does not bring down HC costs. Indeed then tend to rise. For several reasons.
First being that much in medicine in any locale and at a particular time is left undone.
Second, a doc will tend to meet his or hers income goals, and that's part of where #1 comes in.
More docs, and more tends to get done on the same captured patient population.
With more docs there is then easier HC access. So more patients who otherwise would not have pursued their not so urgent malady come in to be seen. So there will be more medical encounters out of that same captured population.
More docs also more referrals and more frequent second opinions. More specialists and then more technical and expensive stuff gets done. And on and on.
Another reason HC provider competition does not tend to drive costs down is due to the nature of our third party payer system. Most fees are negotiated and preset. So the costs for typical visits and procedures is not actually set by the doc. The fees we get for most stuff is already low. And to drop them further could well put the doc out of business.
Please don't suggest that we eliminate third parties as is not a sane solution.
The rest of the world has it figured out. What's wrong with the U.S. ?
How do you know they "figured it out"?
The US is a managed system. You do realize this? The AMA is a monopoly organization.
Its acts like the old guild system. What reason is there to make people work 2 day shifts? Its to create barriers to entry.
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