Bob

Quite a few folks we knew where we used to live...especially parents taking kids to the doctors because they've got a sniffly nose and want something for the cold etc and it's usually for that very reason, they want to get their monies worth from having the insurance.

Sure that's not everyone.

But it's just the point that it isn't just a UK thing either because the NHS is free at point of service.

AmerLisa

I've written about my mil before, she's quite the hypochondriac and a nurse to boot! But she's at her doctor's surgery for every little hangnail and when she came over last June for a visit, she was taking more medication than, in my humble opinion, was probably necessary. But there's certainly no one stopping her, I would have thought her doctor would have referred her to a therapist by now. Every new little minor issue could be something of a catastrophe, so he sends her for every test under the sun. Still, it is free to her, she doesn't pay for office visits, nor prescriptions. Perhaps if she had to pay something, she might think twice....

Pulaski

I sympathize with your sentiment, and this is obviously a large and complex matter with a myriad of facets, but I find it bewildering that anyone would think that making the government responsible for funding, distributing and organizing anything would increase the supply and reduce the price.

Pretty much everything that governments touch become more expensive, harder to obtain, and typically of poorer quality to boot!

yellowroom

US government, yes (state and federal). Other country's governments manage ok though.

HarryTheSpider

My experience/observations are hardly representative/scientific, BUT...

... it is my impression that people here (Phoenix, AZ) rush off to the doctor/proctologist/etc at the first sign of a sniffle, get allergy shots unbelievably frequently (like weekly or twice monthly) and so on - and STILL get ill, and STILL come to work and infect every other bugger. I don't think it's hypochondria, but when the TV and print media are shovelling ads about procedures and medications down your throat and scaring the bejesus out of you, is it any wonder?

Lion in Winter

I don't think this is right. We, and most of Europe, have successfully funded public education, public transport, public utilities, and public health for quite some time. I'm not sure about reducing the price - the difference is in how the price is set and met, and also about a societal decision on priorities as to what we spend our money on in terms of public goods.

I certainly preferred the quantity and price of train transport when we had smelly old British Rail and their terrible tea and sandwiches.

HarryTheSpider

For the US government, Medicare/Medicaid provision, elements of education - 2 examples where government does it better than private industry within the US.

AmerLisa

Good Lord! If that's how the US government does it better, then count me out! I'm all for some kind of universal healthcare system, but for Christ sakes, make it better than damn Medicare!

My grandmother just passed away a week ago, 97 years old and shouldn't have had a worry at all, well she didn't actually, that worry became mine as her next of kin and POA. I received a quick lesson in how much medicare does not pay for and how cheaply it does! If she had continued to live, with all other avenues exhausted, we would have been forced down the Medicaid road. As much as I miss her and I miss her a lot, I'm so glad that I wasn't forced to try and tackle that minefield.

Pulaski

AmerLisa has already commented on Medicare, but so far as education goes, the current estimate, as of January 2013, is that nationally 78% of children get their high school diploma, or more than 1 in 5, do not!

Saying, nothing at all about the quality of high school graduates, it is remarkable that more than 1 in 5 children don't even reach the finishing line, .... and astonishing that anyone would think that this is a level of achievement (for the education system) that is worth bragging about!

Further to the above statistic, the graduation rate in 2012, has just risen back to where it was forty years ago. In other words forty years of bussing, and sundry other programs such as "no child left behind", and no doubt countless billions of USD, and all that has been achieved is to get back to where we were two generations ago!

Maybe there are examples of successful government services, but neither AmerLisa or I are convinced by the examples you cited.

scrubbedexpat099

There was a story some time back about Denver Public Schools basically handing out HS Diploma's so those that failed, many of who could not speak English to any level of competency, did not come back for another year.

I have a friend who is a GP in the UK, certainly from what I gather his Surgery is full with time wasters.

I remember my Grandmother mentioning that she had a 20 year gap between Doctor visits, a bit extreme but in that sort of environment the NHS had a chance.

I have not looked into its funding but I did used to travel a bit to Holland, their system seemed to work.

There seems to be an assumption that it is US or UK, I would say neither.

Pulaski

Agreed. Anecdotally, I have also heard that Dutch healthcare is good/ efficient, and a minor medical matter I had attended to in Italy was also a very positive experience with little wait time, the attention of two doctors, and a bill so small that I considered it part of my holiday experience and not worth even try to claim on insurance for, despite my bring a student at the time .... though I did wonder if I got some credit for enabling the doctors to practice their English?

HarryTheSpider

Silly me - I thought we were discussing efficiency of service provision.

The government administered service costs approx 4% of total costs, private healthcare costs a shade under 12%. Healthcare provision (the bit that matters) is largely the same for both systems.

There are plenty of 'for profit' educational establishments that turn out sh1te and are the subject of investigations.

My badly made point is that just because it's 'government' does not mean it is worse than the private sector equivalent, or vice versa.

Giantaxe

Even Medicare consistently polls higher in user satisfaction than private health insurance does.

Giantaxe

This is a very good point. I wouldn't even know how to start getting information about US hospitals that I see available about NHS hospitals.

scot47

Big scandal at the moment of course is Stafford Hospital. My experiences since I cam beack to live in Scotland in 2010 have been largely poitive. Waiting lists are a pain, but generally on our little island off the West Coast we get good service. That includes podiatry at the Health Centre and home visits from the District Nurse. For specialists I have to go to the nearest large town on the mainland.