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Do your homework before posting. Most european HC has and uses private for-profit insurance. The one first world nation that is completely socialized still has the option for a citizen to purchase private insurance and that is the UK.
Right you are.
They have to get supplemental health insurance because the state-run system sucks!
I was honestly just thinking about that yesterday; sorry to head about your mother I hope all continues going well with her, but what I was thinking about yesterday is how can we lower the cost of healthcare because that's the real problem. The only reason why I've been such an advocate for Universal Health Care for was because it seemed as if we could be in on everything together, but the problem still is that health care costs ridiculous amounts of money. A check up for a cold for someone my age (21) shouldn't be $500 if you don't have insurance but more like $20.
$20?! You probably drop $10 for coffee and a pastry but expect a doctor to cover his labor, overhead, including insurance, staff, rent, equipment, and an amortized portion of the $200k he or she paid in tuition for $20. Wow.
It's not about insurance companies....it's the cost of the care itself. Obamacare didn't address the real problem correctly, it's just going to make it worse.
Recently I had to take my mom to the emergency room when she collapsed. She's 91 years old and had been fighting a cold that she had already seen her doctor about. The emergency room doctor was concerned about her having pneumonia so, they did a blood work up, a chest X-ray and a nasal swab. When everything came back normal, they released her with a prescription for an inhaler. We were there for 4 hours and the bill for the hospital and the doctor is over $5,000. That's the problem...that's ridiculous!
Since my mom is 91, she's on Medicare and how much did Medicare pay?......10%. Obamacare will be paying the same rates as Medicare pays....as bad as $5,000 is, paying only $500 is just as ridiculous. This is why more and more doctors are dropping out of Medicare.
I have to agree. ER's charge a lot, a whole lot. I think we need more "Minute Clinics" which seem to be gaining ground, but one step further, why can't we have the Jiffy Lube shops for quick medical care. You pay 49.99, see a PA/Nurse Practitioner, get a shot, pill, off you go. If it gets serious, you go to the ER if not, you are ok. That is what I did oversears. I went to the local pharmacy for bad colds, flu, etc...quick check, pill, off I went,.
The medical community will fight it tooth and nail because they are making so much money.
They have to get supplemental health insurance because the state-run system sucks!
Do you live in Europe? My point is one pays taxes for basic care, most do not fall into cracks causing bankruptcy. Their healthcare is not hitched to a particular employer, their supplemental, copays, deductibles are way more affordable than our system. One has the choice to enhance their coverage in many European countries. Here in the States many with group coverage can not. If one is not content with their group coverage one can get independent coverage but lose the protections group enjoys. The US clearly has the worst cluster F^%$^ healthcare delivery system in the entire western world.
They have to get supplemental health insurance because the state-run system sucks!
Actually the UK system beats the US one on every public health measure. Infant mortality, lifespan, years spent in good health, maternal mortality, years lost to ill health, amendable mortality, under-5 mortality, disability-adjusted lifespan, the lot.
The US system scores in the low 30s out of 40 developed nations. And the US taxpayer pay more for government healthcare than all but 3 nations.
Actually the UK system beats the US one on every public health measure. Infant mortality, lifespan, years spent in good health, maternal mortality, years lost to ill health, amendable mortality, under-5 mortality, disability-adjusted lifespan, the lot.
The US system scores in the low 30s out of 40 developed nations. And the US taxpayer pay more for government healthcare than all but 3 nations.
As much as I favor a UCH, that is not true. The US does much better in cancer survival rates, and some other indicators as well, none of which I feel like looking up right now. That "score" was a great example of "how to lie with statistics". The US has one of the lowest smoking rates in the developed world, yet we have the second highest rate of death from lung disease? I don't think so!
Do you live in Europe? My point is one pays taxes for basic care, most do not fall into cracks causing bankruptcy. Their healthcare is not hitched to a particular employer, their supplemental, copays, deductibles are way more affordable than our system. One has the choice to enhance their coverage in many European countries. Here in the States many with group coverage can not. If one is not content with their group coverage one can get independent coverage but lose the protections group enjoys. The US clearly has the worst cluster F^%$^ healthcare delivery system in the entire western world.
"Coleman and colleagues drew on data from nearly 2 million cancer patients, ages 15 to 99, whose medical information was entered into 101 population-based cancer registries in 31 countries. The patients had been diagnosed with one of four cancers: breast, colon, rectum, or prostate cancers during the years 1990-1994. They were followed up to 1999, with the researchers comparing five-year survival rates. The highest survival rates were found in the U.S."
Actually the UK system beats the US one on every public health measure. Infant mortality, lifespan, years spent in good health, maternal mortality, years lost to ill health, amendable mortality, under-5 mortality, disability-adjusted lifespan, the lot.
The US system scores in the low 30s out of 40 developed nations. And the US taxpayer pay more for government healthcare than all but 3 nations.
As much as I favor a UCH, that is not true. The US does much better in cancer survival rates, and some other indicators as well, none of which I feel like looking up right now. That "score" was a great example of "how to lie with statistics". The US has one of the lowest smoking rates in the developed world, yet we have the second highest rate of death from lung disease? I don't think so!
I think we are confusing health of the population with the quality of our medical system.
Americans drive more than people in other nations and as a result our average life span is reduced by traffic fatalities, especial those of young people.
We also eat less fish and more red meats than many of the nations listed, and that also impacts public health, but it has nothing to do with our medical apparatus.
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