 bmeuppls says: True, other developed nations may spend less on health care as a percentage of gross domestic product than the United States does — but so does Sudan. Without considering value, such statistical evaluations are worthless. And one of the primary reasons health care costs more in America is that we are a wealthy country that demands the best. And, we’re investing a lot more in medical research. The United States produces over half of the $175 billion in health care technology products purchased globally. In 2004, the federal government funded medical research to the tune of $18.4 billion. By contrast, the European Union — which has a significantly larger population than the United States — allocated funds equal to just $3.7 billion for medical research. ohhhh hmmmm so I guess I need to pay off my medical bills then...it still sucks...(sorry)  Most European countries, as well as Canada, Japan, and Australia have socialized health insurance, not socialized medicine. Socialized medicine is not nearly as good and hopefully we never, ever, adopt that here. I'd rather be in debt than be dead. And if you don't want to be in debt, buy insurance and quit whining that you want someone else to buy it for you. My hospital bills are over $145,000 dollars this year, so far. And that's since March. Without insurance I would have been toast. Even with the high cost of out of pocket expenses I incurred, my insurance still saved my family and I. The majority of the bills were for hospital time, which believe me, is WAY overpriced. So, even though our medical professionals are great people, we do have some things to correct with our system. We really need to work on that, together as a nation. If you had read the article it was talking about CANADA AND EUROPE. Their health care sucks and their politicians all come here for treatment. Their health care sucks and their politicians all come here for treatmentSource? I've had cancer and I had a child born with a cleft palate. My cancer would have been wait listed in either Canada or Europe and my daughter's cleft palate would have earned her the honor of being eligible for a late term abortion in the UK (an easily fixed problem!!!). I chose doctors that were tops in their fields and didn't have to hope that we were assigned quality doctors and not handed off to some quack. When Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi needed heart surgery in 2006, he traveled to the Cleveland Clinic — often considered America’s best hospital for cardiac care. When Canadian Member of Parliament Belinda Stronach, who had denounced a two-tier health care system for Canadians, needed breast cancer surgery herself in 2007, she headed to a California hospital and paid out of pocket. Not to mention the Saudi Royal family or Arafat who bypassed Europe for American treatment.... A recent study by the prestigious Institute of Medicine found that 18,000 Americans die every year because they don’t have health insurance. Many more skip treatments that their insurance company refuses to cover. That’s rationing. Other countries do not ration in this way. Nope that's making a poor choice. NO hospital in this country can refuse to treat...period. Although Michelle Obama's can redirect patients it doesn't want to treat...but I digress. And that website is well known for its obfuscation of the facts. I would label it biased. If you want the real truth on what is happening in Europe and Canada go to some of their newspapers and do a search on healthcare. That will give ... bmeuppls- Yes, those are great examples, and certainly reinforce the topic of the clip. My own personal example was clearly out of context with the clip and you may delete it, if you wish. My bad. I had to wait 7 months to get an MIR done. There is a small town in the central Okanagan (B.C.) that just lost their only two doctors because they were too over-worked. My parents have to drive to a city an hours drive away to get to the nearest hospital. Pity the poor woman there that goes into labour living there. I should have surgery on my neck but it would probably take me over a year just to see a surgeon and then who knows how long I'd have to wait. Our medicare system is going downhill But at least we don't get turned away because we don't have the cash. I will let it stand... all sources of information are valuable. And the clip isn't to imply our system is perfect. I found about $12K in bullshit charges the hospital tried to push through to the insurance company. And my doctors were willing to negotiate the differences between their costs and a "usual customary and reasonable" average of average doctors... but alot of people just want to let someone else get the bill and handle the payments... Tanya, so you choose to just not get treatment cause it's gonna take a year? I don't understand that thinking. Seems to me you have self rationed your care because it isn't that serious, but I may be wrong. I have aches and pains due to an extremely active youth in gymnastics and dance (knees, shins, etc). I choose not to get them treated as I can manage them with palliatives and they haven't reached a point that I need to seek more serious treatment. Should I reach that point, though, I can see a doctor within a week (without a referral) and establish a course of action from there. Part of the problem with universal paid coverage is that some people go to the doctor for every sing... |
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