U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

[ESPNdeportes]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

Not impressed with our healthcare or doctors. I've had a problem with my leg/buttocks for over a year; spent close to two thousand dollars on doctors, and still not even slightly better. But you can bet your *** they want to be paid, and now. Don't even think about walking in without insurance.

Now I'm scheduled for a $700 injection that they "hope" might work.

Every time I drive away from a doctor's office, I feel like I've just been duped.

Take care of yourselves and practice all of the preventative maintenance you can. Don't count on a doctor to fix you.

Edit: Heck, I know there are some great doctors out there; I'm just bitter due to my situation. A year of limping, tons of cash, and no improvement can get a guy down.

What sort of docs have you seen? You may want to see a Physical Medical & Rehabilitation doctor (called PM&R or physiatrist also) if you haven't already. They may be the best hope for your problem. Sorry you're continuing to have problems man.

[ESPNdeportes]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

The drug companies have got you won over. You act as though the cost of a social health care system would cost you more than the current US system. Its completely untrue. Obviously you haven't read any of the facts and figures presented here. The US cost per capita in health care is far greater than any other country and that's without even insuring almost 50 million Americans. Sure your taxes would rise under a social health care system but it would more than benefit you since you would no longer be paying for a very expensive health care system. You would actually SAVE money. That's what the health industry doesn't want some of you guys to figure out.

Do you realize that the overhead of US health insurance companies is at least 15% higher than a similar social program? Yet you guys act as though the socialized programs are money wasters. No money is wasted on high paid CEOs or advertising. That money alone could be used to insure the people in the US without coverage.

Lastly, why on earth did you bring up capitalism in your comments? Capitalism and democracy exists in Canada and almost every other industrialized country. Just because most first world countries have socialized health care doesn't mean we are commies. 50% of personal bankruptcies in the US are at least partially due to health care problems. That's terrible.

No matter any way you look at it, I think everyone deserves health care as a basic human right.

Great post man. The drug company propoganda machine is a beast lol.

In terms of overhead, the stat that I hear repeatedly is that the average overhead of a private insurance company is around 30% (meaning that only 70 cents on the dollar goes to actual care costs) whereas medicare and medicaid have around a 3% overhead. That's just one factor in the huge, expanding cost of health care today.

[dkgojackets]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

average life expectancy is 79.4 years, two years more than in the U.S. The country has far more hospital beds and doctors per capita than America, and far lower rates of death from diabetes and heart disease.

This stuff has nothing to do with socialized healthcare.

[Hootiefish]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

A couple of things that no one seems to mention in regards to the high cost of healthcare is the effect that we, the people utilizing the healthcare industry, have on the costs.

Example: Malpractice insurance would not cost so much for doctors and hospitals, thus resulting in lower costs for the consumers, if patients/lawyers would stop filing so many ridiculous lawsuits.

The demand for services and hospitals beds, medicine, treatment, etc. would be much lower if people would just take better care of themselves. We lead the world in the number of preventative diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, lung cancer, etc. Imagine how much less everyone would have to spend if people would eat right, exercise, and quit smoking?

My point is that we all have a role to play in the sad state that our healthcare industry is in. While we may not have an effect on certain aspects of the problem, we can do little things to help the overall problem.

[born_bad]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

Yeah, not sure why anyone would use capitalism as a defense for the situation here. So, you enjoy the fact that our prescription drugs cost about 100x more than other countries for the same exact drug? There's a scene in the movie Sicko where a 9/11 rescue worker states she is currently paying $120 for an inhaler every month in the US to help with her breathing problems. She gets the same exact inhaler in Cuba for 5 cents. Yay for capatilism and CEOs getting rich off people's illnesses so they can buy a 3rd Ferrari!!

Also, there are socialized services in this country already - the library, postal service, etc. so it's not like all things socialized are "evil" and not going to work well. No one complains about getting books from the library for free.

I don't mind some tax money going towards health care if it means I never have to worry about getting a medical bill I can't afford for me or a loved one and having to make a decision to go deep in debt or not get the care needed.

It's also very sad to me that if you have a baby, the infant mortality rate in the US is worse compared to other countries where you could have the baby delivered for free. So, how is our capitalisitic health care helping us again?

[USF11]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

Yeah, not sure why anyone would use capitalism as a defense for the situation here. So, you enjoy the fact that our prescription drugs cost about 100x more than other countries for the same exact drug? There's a scene in the movie Sicko where a 9/11 rescue worker states she is currently paying $120 for an inhaler every month in the US to help with her breathing problems. She gets the same exact inhaler in Cuba for 5 cents. Yay for capatilism and CEOs getting rich off people's illnesses so they can buy a 3rd Ferrari!!

Also, there are socialized services in this country already - the library, postal service, etc. so it's not like all things socialized are "evil" and not going to work well. No one complains about getting books from the library for free.

I don't mind some tax money going towards health care if it means I never have to worry about getting a medical bill I can't afford for me or a loved one and having to make a decision to go deep in debt or not get the care needed.

Competition is good. Unverisal Health care would eventually effect the quality of doctors. jmo.

[dkgojackets]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

*cough* ACism. *cough*

[born_bad]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

Competition is good. Unverisal Health care would eventually effect the quality of doctors. jmo.

You would still have doctors competing for jobs. Also, in England (where the health care is free), the doctors are awarded bonuses for having their patients health improve. For example, if you get X amount of patients to do something like quit smoking, you can get a bonus as a doctor, so you'd be motivated to actually help people, as opposed to here where they're motivated to NOT help people. In the US, they get bonuses for saving the companies money by denying people coverage they need for services. Basically, by not footing the bill for someone, they make a profit, so they do that as often as they can (not foot the bill).

[USF11]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

You would still have doctors competing for jobs. Also, in England, the doctors are awarded bonuses for having their patients health improve. For example, if you get X amount of patients to do something like quit smoking, you can get a bonus as a doctor, so you'd be motivated to actually help people, as opposed to here where they're motivated to NOT help people. In the US, they get bonuses for saving the companies money by denying people coverage they need for services. Basically, by not footing the bill for someone, they make a profit, so they do that as often as they can (not foot the bill).

The best Doctors will go where they can make the most money period.

[born_bad]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

The best Doctors will go where they can make the most money period.

So, then you're suggesting we have all the best doctors? In the world? If we have all the best doctors in the world, then why are we last and very low compared to other countries at, you know, actually taking care of people's medical problems. You would think all these great doctors and services would mean we'd rank higher in basic categories like infant mortality. It's *safer* to give child birth in most other countries, so where are all these great doctors?

Anyway, I disagree with that because the stats for how we rank would be a lot higher if we had all the best doctors due to the fact of how much more they can make here.

[fishepa]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

So, then you're suggesting we have all the best doctors? In the world?

Yes, I would say we do.

[rudyjuly2]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

Competition is good. Unverisal Health care would eventually effect the quality of doctors. jmo.

That may happen a little because some doctors jump to the US for the big cash and profits they can make compared to some other countries who pay more reasonable wages according to government rates for surgeries, drugs, etc. If the US went to a socialized system, it may not draw as many out of country physicians but I doubt you would see a significant drop in the quality of your doctors. As others have said in the past, people don't become doctors just to become millionaires and they still make good money in other systems.

I have been inside the Royal Beaumont Hospital in Detroit and inside some of the older hospitals here in Windsor. The sheer quality of the building in Detroit was amazing. Granite on the walls, waterfalls, an attendant in the waiting room to answer phone calls, etc. Very impressive and also a waste of money imo. But the hospital wants to be pretty to attract clients (or should that be patients).

Again, the fundamental question is should we make money off of people's illnesses? Do people not deserve to get medical treatment, particularly life threatening treatment, without losing their entire savings or home if they can't afford it? The first question from a doctor shouldn't be, "Do you have medical insurance?" Any negatives associated with a social program FAR outweigh the fact that EVERYONE gets medical treatment and at no additional cost other than the taxes they already pay (which would cost less for the average American than what they currently pay for health insurance).

[USF11]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

So, then you're suggesting we have all the best doctors? In the world? If we have all the best doctors in the world, then why are we last and very low compared to other countries at, you know, actually taking care of people's medical problems. You would think all these great doctors and services would mean we'd rank higher in basic categories like infant mortality. It's *safer* to give child birth in most other countries, so where are all these great doctors?

Anyway, I disagree with that because the stats for how we rank would be a lot higher if we had all the best doctors due to the fact of how much more they can make here.

1. The Survey is wrong.
2. Healthcare cannot be summed up as a whole, I have great insurance other people may not.

Look at public schools, they are horrible. Why would you want health care to suffer the same fate.

[rudyjuly2]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

Look at public schools, they are horrible. Why would you want health care to suffer the same fate.

That thinking leads to an elitist and segragated society. There is no reason a public system can't be good. That also implies that socialized health care would be bad when it clearly works well and at a cheaper price in other countries.

[fishepa]

Re: U.S. Dead Last in Healthcare ranking

If nobody has to pay for medical treatment, the quality of the doctors will go to crap.