Scan Medical Insurance

Confusing, how is US medical treatment is the best?

When US insurance companies send patients to Bangkok for treatment! "United Group Programs, a Boca Raton, Fla.-based company that sells self-insurance policies to small businesses, is already offering a plan that sends patients to Bumrungrad International hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. UGP says the plan will save employers more than 50 percent on major medical costs and slash employees' out-of-pocket expenses to zero. " http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/11/04/health/main2153345.shtml I have heard it on NPR today and could not believe it! hey jake you probably live in the state which requires auto insurance. Do you choose it or is it mandated to you? Do not you think the can be a similar approach in healthcare? It is not all black and white as you think! hey J D . Facts have a liberal bias, do not you know? I trust NPR over FOX and facts are facts... Now let me get it straight ! You are saying insurance companies are steering customers to inferior health service? Wow!

Public Comments

1. that may be one company..I still want the freedom to chose my health insurance and not to be dictated to by the government
2. Then why do wealthy people fly here to have critical surgeries when they live in places with nationalized healthcare? US medicine is the best. And insurance companies only get away with that when someone wont fight back. Stupid customers fault.
3. Well for one you're getting your information from NPR and CBSnews.com both of which are extremely liberal media outlets. Secondly, if you work for a company that has insurance policies like that I'd find a new job, and even if you can't that has nothing to do with the medical system. It has to do with the insurance system, completely different things. Thirdly, the insurance company is sending people over there to get it done because it's CHEAPER, not better. In addition to your comment over auto insurance, I'm glad I live in a state that requires you have auto insurance to drive, that way when some jerk hits me I know my car is going to get fixed instead of having to pay for it out of my own pocket his insurance will pay for it! An in regards to socialized medicine, it'll be a cold day in hell before I pay for someone else's medical care through taxes from the government. Those people need to get a job that provides health care, heck join the military if you have to! I served for 6 years, it's better than no healthcare at all.
4. The key here is self-insurance, this isn't a big company, with the clout to tell hospitals it will either accept their payment schedule or lose customers. So they go to Thailand. We do have great hospitals, and doctors, but it does no good if they aren't on your insurance plan, or you insurance won't approve your operation, or, as is most common, takes forever to OK it. They can be irrational, hoping you just give up. You already can't choose your plan, those who think so have never had a chronic illness. Once on a plan you can't choose your doctor or your hospital, going out of plan means you have to pay out of pocket. On top of your having paid for your plan. Its funny, in a sad way, to think that some of you want to blame the consumer for the paces that insurance companies put you through to get the benefits and protections you bought. You have to remember that you are dealing with ill people who are severely physically stressed, and they may not always be as capable as if they were well. The more I see people who hate universal insurance, the more I realize they literally don't know whereof they speak.
5. Latest figures show the US as # 21 of 21 in all major aspects of health care. If this is the best in the world you are swallowing the pharmaceutical and insurance industry propaganda hook, line and sinker! And sink you will when the insurance company bean counters make medical decisions for you instead of your health care provider making the right decision for you. Wealthy people from poor countries come to the US or private clinics in London for major procedures or to Los Angeles for cosmetic surgery. Having been hospitalized three times in Sweden and three times in the US I prefer the care I received in Sweden any day. Quality of care was excellent and for the patient no concerns over cost. Yes, I have heard it a million times about taxes but we have over 40 million uninsured and under insured in this country, can we be proud of that figure? Per capita we spend more, mainly because many people must seek care in ER facilities because they cannot afford to pay insurance premiums. Please stop all this talk about Canadians coming to the US for health care, some real numbers and stats please!.
6. In some countries, certain medical procedures are cheaper. I have heard of middle income & higher income bracket individuals having procedures done at a 1/3 of the cost. If this is happening it is not because of quality....
7. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is part of the United States Government. It is FDA's job to make sure drugs and other medical treatments work and are safe. Choosing Treatments to Get Better When you're sick it isn't always easy to get well again. There are lots of medicines and other ways to treat health problems. You may hear about some from a friend. Or you may see an ad on TV or in the paper. Or your doctor may recommend a treatment. It's FDA's job to make sure the medicines and other treatments people buy are safe and really work. Most treatments you can buy have FDA's OK. But some don't. An FDA-approved medicine may help you get better. Some are phony and are a waste of your money. Some can even make you sicker. Just because a product is advertised doesn't mean it can really do what the ad says it can. A phony medicine may make you sicker.