Scan Medical Insurance

Survive in America DIE in Europe!!! Just how much better is American MEDICINE?? ALOT!!!!!?

Public Comments

1. no thanks. i don't have time to read that. shorten it next time.
2. No ones interested
3. isnt this just another example of you being brain washed by the media!! u know-- even if you have such great medical care-- dont you think your country is so greedy that it refuses to help poorer countries, and charges them an arm and a leg instead of helping their fellow man? the cost of medication may not be much for you but people are dying of diseases that can be cured or the effects reduced by medication which is not given to third world countries-- by medication that costs the big drug companies to create them like a small percent of a penny, AAARRRGGGHHHHH
4. That is why Europe has less infant mortality and a longer life expectancy. Your quotes are only about people who have medical care in the US. Many, if not soon most do not have adequate care. They pay more per person, even including those persons who have NO care. In England people have a long wait, In the 'States rich people do not have to wait, but most people still have to go through their Insurance red tape, and a good friend died last year because her insurance company had her diagnosed as having arthritis instead of bone cancer because a cancer diagnosis would cost them more money. (it was deliberate) And then there are folk like myself who don't wait in line as I cannot even GET in line. And because of a system that throws off of the system those who need medical care the most, their stats for the rest look real good. Worse, those most at risk also can't get a job because the employer would not be able to afford the insurance, so hires the younger healthier worker. In the US you still don't choose your insurance, your employer does, and worse might change it every year, based on the best price (for him) forcing you to find new doctors or medicines not covered in the new plan. The waste fraud and abuse is many times that of Government because there is no transparency so only the reporting is reduced. Arbitrary bureaucrats still override doctors' decisions and refuse treatment to increase profits, with bonuses for worse care up and down the line. Doctors often have to hire extra staff just to argue with the insurance companies, just as insurance companies hire extra staff to fight with the doctors. Senior Government officials rarely make more than a few hundred thousand dollars a year. When "private" the senior management makes hundreds of millions of dollars. England appears to have the worst system in Europe, but it is still miles ahead of the American system. Medical something always beats nothing, especially when it costs less. Your long spiel is a fraud.
5. You should do your homework before you write such a long boring diatribe. Actually America has officially the worst medical system of 17 developed nations according to a study done by the commonwealth club, Britain is the second worst: http://trusted.md/blog/hippocrates/2005/11/09/system_failure_us_is_officially_the_worst Also the American Medical system is the leading cause of death is America, beating heart disease and cancer: http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/sepp/2003/10/29/medical_system_is_leading_cause_of_death_and_injury_in_us.htm Good luck with your ignorant book
6. Whats ya point
7. Ok i read it. Your health system is better but you pay alot for it, and I think its unsustainable the amount you pay. Problem is that more remedies/fixes are made to help with illnesses (hip replacements ect - which weren't around 30 years ago).... and they cost the NHS thousands and thousands more for each patient. Not just hip replacements but hundreds of new treatments for illnesses which couldn't be treated before... but which are expensive to treat. I've got private medical insurance and I live in the UK - but I also trust the NHS.... i will use my private if NHS can't treat me adequately. NHS would be better if all the tax money used for the NHS were passed to about 5 competing... trust type/5% max annual profit/private companies. Cut out all the wasteful government tiers of middle managers.
8. Well apart from the fact that half of your stats are wrong an you can't compare per head because you have four times the population of the U.K., so it does not correlate. How much contradiction is there in your cut an pasted argument??? you pretty much cancel out your own argument then start it all over again. The biggest difference, the one that you outline right at the beginning is the only one that matters at the moment. You go for your credit cards (and Deny anyone who don't have one) we treat those in need. Neither system is great to be honest, but its largely down to the number of consultants in the U.K. an the way the system hurts itself that is the problem. But seeing as its 4 in the morning here I can't be arsssed to explain anymore. All the best.
9. Was that a question or a lecture?
10. All true and even though the post is so long it falls far short of the whole truth. Unfortuantely people are going to skim this and see it as saying "America is better" or "Brittan better" whereas i don't belive that's the point at all. To me it seems that each could take wonderful lessons from the other. America's healthcare system has been teetering on the edge for years now. It won't be long before our system implodes and all hell breaks loose. The worst problem with that is when that happens...it will grossly affect large portions of the civilized world. Not just America. Here in America we are bombarded by healthcare topics daily. Consumers are much more savvy then they used to be, and as a populace we know much more about our own health then ever before. We love this topic and study it endlessly. Why do people in european contries tend to live longer? How does a glass of wine a day play in their health? whats the effect of eating rice on a daily basis? In America we constantly look at other contries and find these questions and, Americans are all to willing to throw millions of dollars at them to get the answers. I'd like to see Japans healthcare factored into this debate. Another counrty that loves it's technology and more than willing to throw money at testing and equipment. How much Yen is spent every year on MRI's? what are the cancer figures for the Japanese? Americans are not greedy. Capatalists are greedy. Americans send millions of vials of medicine to 3rd world countries every year. Americans spent millions and millions of dollars on tsunami relief. (private citizens and our government) Capatalist drug companies make every penny they can on the worlds illnesses. They also spend billions every year researching the next way to save our lives. We could all do more to help the world we live in. We could certainly stand against our neighbors who abuse our healthcare systems driving costs even higher. I don't know who has the best healthcare system in the world. I do know the best doctors are the ones who not only study medicine in their home country but also study abroad.
11. as an american i am proud to say that we have great medical care. the ones you hear complain are the few noisy ones, not the majority. i am glad someone has noticed we are not the bad guys our liberal media and politicians try to shove down everyones throat. you really do not hear what the silent majority think. and the loud politicians, they have the best of everything. servants, homes, big gas guzzling cars and jets (not that i believe that global warming is man made), and the advocate the "do as i say not as i do model." this was a great piece! i read the spectator all the time. ps, who do you think pays or all the illegals who come here and give birth and then takes care of their families? WE DO, with free medical called medicade/medical, welfare payemtns and food stamps. god bless america!
12. Keep dreaming,you are probably rich,that's why you have good doctors.What about working class?aren't they americans?and the poor?
13. I agree. The problem in the US is raising insurance premiums, not the quality of healthcare. Why do they go up? Malpractice premiums for doctors, and our paranoid reaction to every minor symptom. We are lawsuit happy country. You want to lower malpractice premiums, tort reform, where loser pays. The other problem is a social problem, and an ethical problem. We are a country of hypochondriacs, and doctors are willing to oblige, prescribing Ritalin for anyone who claims to have a child with ADD, or Prozac for anyone who claims to have the blues. Don't get me wrong, sometimes people need these medicines, but they are over prescribed. But the cancer survivor rates are probably correct. http://www.shns.com/shns/g_index2.cfm?action=detail&pk=MURDOCK-08-24-06 The reason is simple, quicker treatment. The reason for quicker treatment is also simple, competition, and less bureaucracy. I don't think the solution is Universal Healthcare. Most people hate HMO's. Imagine the US government running the world's largest HMO. And for the statement that we have a bigger population, so the numbers are skewed for "head count", notice the statistics are percentages... Doesn't matter if it’s 50 out of 100, 50 million out of 100 million. 50% is 50%. Grade school math. No, I think the best solution is to encourage competition, so healthcare providers have to provide better treatment and lower costs, not take the competition away. The more the government gets involved the more screwed up it gets. And for God's sake, people, if you have a sniffle, stop soaking up doctors' time, and raising insurance premiums. Have a bowl of soup and get over it.
14. The main difference between the UK NHS and American Medicare is that here in UK we do not have to pay anything for "at point of need care". What we get in UK is quite good for the small amount it costs each person by way of National Insurance Contributions. A UK citizen can opt for private medicate such as BUPA etc if they so wish, but must bear most of the cost themselves. The NHS is not and has never been in the business of procuring expensive procedures and applying them to patients. The method is for a wide range of basic health-care and advice and not really very much about saving life for it's own sake. The original concept of the NHS was to keep 'breadwinners' at work and not to be fussing around with whether or not a woman would be able to have children or that someone aged 60+ was having a heart attack. More than half Americans have no medical insurance. Therefore, no matter how good the USA medical companies may be, most Americans simply cannot afford to take advantage of what may be on offer. Here in UK because we have a National Health Service and a Welfare State - the worry is taken out of the equation. Hospital infections such as MRSA are easy to deal with. The problem is that the 'private cleaning companies' who are employed to keep NHS hospitals clean, are only interested in 'profit' and not particularly interested in getting on top of a serious problem. Where do most of the infections in our NHS hospitals come from? Put simply, they are 'walked in' on the feet of visitors and patients alike. A major source of infections is computer keyboards. The PC keyboard carries more germs than a lavatory seat. Doctors working in A&E [I have witnessed this, by the way], wear disposible latex gloves. The doc goes to the PC and types something into a file or at any rate, uses the keyboard. The same doctor then touches a patient while still wearing the same latex gloves. And so it goes.
15. Your question is so long some people have died trying to get to the end of it. ! Its not really a question anyway.Its just a book.
16. A heck of a lot of people in Uncle Sam`s country do not get healthcare, they can`t afford it. That does not happen in the UK, everyone gets healthcare. You want to make your mind up about what you really mean... Some of your stupid posts you are deriding the UK Armed Forces. Then you say they are Europes best. I suggest you go back to the Asylum and inform them that you are not ready to be released back into the real world. Ohh, and don`t forget to check that your insurance is paid up. Or you will join the thousands of yanks who can`t afford healthcare and are left to suffer.