AmerLisa

Really? And what if you can't raise enough money to go? You can go around in circles with this one all day....

fatbrit

There are no circles to go in. American health care is an extremely bad deal unless you're a multimillionaire to whom money has no real meaning.

Non-multimillionaires supporting the status quo are deluded fools, usually holding a cross, flying a flag or both.

Not complicated at all.

AmerLisa

Don't go back to that chestnut, its been roasted way too many times and in my opinion, non-debatable.

My point was your ridiculous statement about car washes and people coming over here to get treatment when they can't receive it in the UK. Sidestepping that one and going back to the other when you've been called on it is pretty funny, almost.

fatbrit

If you can't get the treatment in the UK, you can always go elsewhere to get it or possibly even pay for it in the UK.
If you can't afford the treatment in the US, you're basically bankrupted and buggered.

What other ways are there to say it?

One system limits your health care by your personal ability to pay. The other limits your health care by the cost benefit of the treatment.

AmerLisa

Seems as if its a win win for the undertaker....

fatbrit

It's a win, win for corporate America. They charge us at least twice the price of comparable nations for our health care needs. Yay for CEO salaries, eh?

chrisfromusa

You forgot to mention that your friendly neighborhood doctor also likes to charge for extra unneeded tests because more tests = more money for his practice. Of course his/her excuse would be, oh I was just making sure so I don't get sued

Jerseygirl

Our daughter was covered by our insurer (Atena) until she stopped full time education. She spent 5 years at uni and was 23 1/2 when she left.

snowbunny

I believe the current max age is 23. I also believe that the current health care bill up for vote extends that to 27.

I am so torn - do we go with this bandaid reform that still seems to frighten everyone silly - or do we do it "right"?

I have to say "go with the bandaid reform" so that everyone will see that it's not opening the seventh seal.

Jerseygirl

Well of course that happens here...either the insurance company refuse to pay or you do not have insurance and have to pay for it yourself.

My daughter's schoolfriend was diagnosed with cancer when she was 16. About a year into her treatment at Sloane Kettering NYC...her parents were told by the insurance company to find a cheaper alternative as they would no longer pay for SK. Six months later they refused to pay for any more overnight stays. The girl was just a teenager for gawd's sake...she died when she was 19. Due to various costs relating to her treatment her parents were hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt when she died.

Jerseygirl

She left uni in 2008...maybe it's changed since then.

Jerseygirl

Even if a drug is not available through the NHS the patient can still purchase it themselves...and still receive NHS treatment in the UK.

snowbunny

Sorry - I wasn't clear. I'm unsure whether there are federal mandates on *minimum* coverage for dependent children. There are rules of thumb that seem to hold across the different states, but...

The whole ridiculous problem of something as relatively simple as "is my child eligible to be on my insurance" being complicated is enough to weep. The fact that the federal government, the state governments, and the policy writers can all set various ages and conditions is nonsense enough.

chrisfromusa

1. We need to limit the excessive lawsuits that patients can bring on doctors. And have proof that a doctor actually has damaged you, judges need to dismiss frivolous lawsuits like suing a doctor because his percussion might have been a little too hard.

2. Cap the price on drugs to a reasonable enough level that everyone can afford their medication and the drug companies have enough incentive to continue to do research.

3. Apply the Sherman Antitrust Act to the insurance companies and ban them from collaborating on regional pricing and setting up "territories".

4. Make it federal law that all insurance companies must use one standardized claim form that doctors can easily handle

5. Make all insurance companies non-profit organizations. Right now they exist to make profit, and their CEOs are not entirely to blame. Don't blame the CEO for his high salary, blame the hundreds of shareholders that want a better return on their investment

Ideas? Criticisms? Anything I missed?

Songbird

How about we cut through all the bs and have a single payer, universal health care for all system??

Myth One: The United States has the best health care system in the world
* The United States ranks poorly relative to other industrialized nations in health care despite having the best trained health care providers and the best medical infrastructure of any industrialized nation.

Myth Two: Universal Health Care Would Be Too Expensive
* Single payer universal health care costs would be lower than the current US system due to lower administrative costs. The United States spends 50 to 100% more on administration than single payer systems. By lowering these administrative costs the United States would have the ability to provide universal health care, without managed care, increase benefits and still save money.

Myth Three: Universal Health Care Would Deprive Citizens of Needed Services
* The US denies access to health care based on the ability to pay. Under a universal health care system all would access care. There would be no long waiting lists as in some other industrialized countries due to the oversupply in our providers and infrastructure, and the willingness/ability of the United States to spend more on health care than other industrialized nations.

Myth Four: Universal Health Care Would Result In Government Control And Intrusion Into Health Care Resulting In Loss Of Freedom Of Choice
* Single payer, universal health care administered by a state public health system would be much more democratic and much less intrusive than our current system. Consumers and providers would have a voice in determining benefits, rates and taxes. Problems with free choice, confidentiality and medical decision making would be resolved.

Myth Five: Universal Health Care Is Socialized Medicine And Would Be Unacceptable To The Public
* Single payer, universal health care is not socialized medicine and would be preferred by the majority of the citizens of this country.

Myth Six: The Problems With The US Health Care System Are Best Solved By Private Corporate Managed Care Medicine because they are the most efficient
* For profit, managed care can not solve the US health care problems because health care is not a commodity that people shop for, and quality of care must always be compromised when the motivating factor for corporations is to save money through denial of care and decreasing provider costs. In addition managed care has introduced problems of patient confidentiality and disrupted the continuity of care through having limited provider networks.

Shamelessly plagiarized from http://cthealth.server101.com/the_ca...ted_states.htm
More facts and details can be gleaned from there. Although over 10 years old it's as relevant now as it was then, perhaps even more so as the gravy train has garnered speed over the years.