Re: Affordable Health Care Plan
It is not simply a matter of having a national health care plan versus not having one. For example, if we had a government thatrequired the pharmaceutical industry to negotiate on prices for meds rather than what it did when it created Part D--gave them free rein to charge whatever they wished in response to this industry's lobby and donations--that alone would enormously benefit Americans needing prescription drugs.
Many, many years ago my wife was in an accident while we traveled in Ecuador and was hospitalized in a small, privately owned (by the MDs) clinic where the care was not only excellent but incredibly compassionate in ways that I (who unfortunately have to utilize the 'med biz' very, very constantly and extensively...) have rarely seen here in the U.S. When asked what accommodations I wanted for her, I asked what was available: semi-private (3 in a room, not exactly 'semi') with shared bath for $9/day, or a private room (price uncertain), or a private two-room suite (sofa bed for me) for $35/day. I took this last option.
This in a country where a men's suit cost $140, a pair of shoes $65, a tee-shirt $8, rolls at the supermarket about 18 cents each, and an hour in the Internet cafe $2, in other words a little less than here in the U.S. but not ridiculously less as you find in some parts of the world (in a country where the circulating currency is U.S. greenbacks).
I was flabbergasted! How can such quality medical care possibly cost so relatively little, so I asked questions and found out how. There is NO insurance industry, and there is no pharmaceutical lobby!!! The MDs themselves own the hospitals/clinics and charge what people can afford. I needed a prescription (non-generic) for myself which I was allowed to fill in the hospital pharmacy: $6. When my wife was taken (by ambulance: $11) to a free-standing radiology facility (such as we have here too) and the the owner/MD did complete body CAT scans checking for the possibility of broken bones (there were none, gratefully!), he apologetically handed me a bill: $85! In my fractured Spanish I explained to him that in the U.S., they might let me use the toilet for that amount!
Yes, the excrement is getting deeper.... 'Nuff said; I'll get off my soapbox!
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