I had heard similar things from Canadian friends. Wealthy Canadians don't worry about costs (like any wealthy person anywhere). If they need an MRI and want it *now*, they just go to the US and pay for it. Ordinary people have to wait months. I've heard 6, 9 or even 12 months.
<i>I had heard similar things from Canadian friends. Wealthy Canadians don't worry about costs (like any wealthy person anywhere). If they need an MRI and want it *now*, they just go to the US and pay for it. Ordinary people have to wait months. I've heard 6, 9 or even 12 months.</i> Here's one anecdotal evidence on how insane our system in the US is: My father in law had had a heart attack. He had been taken to a small hospital. They didn't have the facilities needed. He needed to be quickly transferred via ambulance to a bigger hospital 90 minutes away. Before the ambulance company agreed to transfer him, the ambulance company demanded that he sign a document stating that the transfer was patient required and not medically required. This would enable the ambulance company to get the patient to pay and thus get a much higher fee than if it was medically required. Can you imagine a health care system where the patient is dying and at the same have to fight with the ambulance company about who should pay for the ambulance fare? It is fricking insane! As it was, he was to weak to fight so he signed it (the doctor was unavailable as he had just started surgery on another patient). Afterwards, we went to court and won after a 2 year court fight. The cost for the ambulance fare would have been almost $3,000! I think most people in our country, the US, have good health insurance through our companies. So, most of us think we have good system. Until we get laid off... Or until we see what 's wrong. For example when I saw what happened to my father-in-law and the ambulance fare. Our system is very much imperfect. To say it can't be fixed is to deny reality. Why would we only have to import the Canadian system? Why couldn't we take the best of the American/Swedish/French/etc system and truly enact something that is the envy of the world?
In Switzerland, it's mandatory to have health insurance... much like it is mandatory to have car insurance here in the US...
Great idea but I would add a condition in there like, mandatory for people earning over 25k per household. Then regulate the insurance companies allowed to do business in the country. Cap there earnings to a max set % and anything above must be returned in premium rates.
Well said. That's exactly the problem and also the major difference between the US and the Canadian system. People in Canada simply don't have to worry about it and that's a major weight lifted of one's shoulders when one hits a rough patch in life.
Don't you see the handwriting on the wall? Humanity is just beginning to realize that healthcare SHOULD have nothing to do with big BIZ. it's our next 'level' of wisdom. make your $ somewhere else, but when it comes down to decisions of who lives and who dies, who gets medicall attention they need and who doesn't... who gets well, who doesn't.. i don't care what it costs everyone should get the healthcare they need we can spend a million dollars per minute 'democratizing' the planet ??
I'm not a puppet to anyone. I simply don't believe in the free market theory applies everywhere. The US system is clear proof of that. Please, explain a bit more about your reasons (407 vs 401). I'm always willing to change my opinion but so far I didn't hear anything that would warrant that. And yes there are horror stories in both systems, believe it or not. I also had a quite bad experience with waiting for a long time in ER in a Canadian hospital for service but probably nothing compared to what you experienced (as mentioned in one of your posts).
You should read Coronary. Over a five-year period, two doctors performed over a thousand unnecessary coronary bypass surgeries. Anything to help the bottom line... I also think that many of the latest/most expensive tests, imaging procedures etc. that we use here are either unnecessary or not cost-effective. I read that somebody authored a computer program that asked patients a series of questions about their symptoms. The program was slightly more accurate in diagnosing illnesses than human doctors.