[jebartle]

Australia, Germany, France, Canada, UK, Russia to name a few. Will it ever happen in US?

[rjn5656]

I recently traveled to several european countries on vacation. Universal health care is not what it seems. Most people tell us you need private health insurance in order to get adequate care. So just be careful what you read.

[l2ridehd]

And of those 32 where does it work well? None that I know of. Costs run out of control and quality of care suffers. There are no good answers that solve the health care issues every country faces. Doctors leave, the tax burden becomes so onerous that those that make good money leave and the problems get worse.

Someone was touting the very low infant death rate in one of the Nordic countries that have socialized health care. So much lower than the US. Once you studied the facts, we count a child at birth, they don't start counting until the baby is 30 days old. So it becomes very difficult to compare statistics from country to country. The UK's system is bankrupt and cutting services to survive. Canada's does work but for a very small population and the waiting list does get long for lots of things. And those that can afford it do come to the US for lots of items.

There has to be many things we can do to improve our current system but am not sure Universal care is the correct answer.

[stan the man]

Make more doctors ..You can't tell me that in a country the size of the United States we don't have millions of people that are qualified to be doctors today. Why is it we have to go to other countries to import doctors to come and work here at big salaries. If I go to India I'm quite sure if i go to a doctor he will not have america accent. Or came from the USA to practice in India. Stop with the baloney the AMA Controls the amount of doctors being produced in the United States and keeps it low so it is really no competition. So as all the experts claim that competition always lowers the price of everything let's make more hospitals produce more doctors. I'm really not quite sure that would work either as I look and see how many lawyers are produced in this country and still they charge a high price. Least the doctor has to go to school for many years to get his doctorates to bring and become an M.D. where real estate salespeople get 6% to do nothing.

[leftyf]

Move to one of those countries for a year then give us a report.

[JoMar]

Originally Posted by stan the man

Make more doctors ..You can't tell me that in a country the size of the United States we don't have millions of people that are qualified to be doctors today. Why is it we have to go to other countries to import doctors to come and work here at big salaries. If I go to India I'm quite sure if i go to a doctor he will not have america accent. Or came from the USA to practice in India. Stop with the baloney the AMA Controls the amount of doctors being produced in the United States and keeps it low so it is really no competition. So as all the experts claim that competition always lowers the price of everything let's make more hospitals produce more doctors. I'm really not quite sure that would work either as I look and see how many lawyers are produced in this country and still they charge a high price. Least the doctor has to go to school for many years to get his doctorates to bring and become an M.D. where real estate salespeople get 6% to do nothing.

Make the hospitals produce more doctors? How do you propose they do that, march the police into homes and drag them to medical school? LOL. I have talked to many doctors about the shortage and they all are in agreement is that it takes a special person today to enter medicine to be a primary care physician. The money and reduced hours are in the specialty areas and that's where medical students focus today. The more medicare provides payment the less attractive primary care becomes. The older the population becomes the more specialized medicine is needed and they don't need to accept government money to do well. There isn't a simple answer. Also have had neighbors return recently from Europe and they talked to a lot of folks about health care. They heard what the previous poster heard, very expensive tax contribution needed but lots of shortcomings, especially as you get older. Don't have first hand knowledge on that.

[kathyspear]

On a river cruise through The Netherlands and Belgium, tour guide tells us how great it is that they get free college and free healthcare. I ask what they pay in taxes. He says anyone making the equivalent of 50k USD pays about 2/3 in taxes.

k.

[blueash]

For all of you who have posted or are going to post that countries with Universal Health Care have poor care, or that their citizens hate it, or that you once met someone from Germany who wished for Americanized health care.. these sorts of questions are regularly asked by pollsters and researchers. You don't hear of citizen movements to scrap universal health care and replace it with private insurance anywhere, not even from the most conservation politicians in Europe. Tweak the system, yes. But copy the USA, no.

2014 US last in health care of 11 Western nations

2011 U.S. had the highest percentage of respondents who reported being very confident they would receive effective treatment (34.7%) and also the highest percentage saying they were not at all confident they would (9.2%). The U.S., meanwhile, had the highest percentage of respondents who believed that their health system was in need of complete rebuilding (25.4%).

the Nordic countries that have socialized health care. So much lower than the US. Once you studied the facts, we count a child at birth, they don't start counting until the baby is 30 days old

.

That is completely wrong. I wish people would post links when they make such outrageous claims. There are very slight differences in definitions of live birth.
Sweden uses exactly the same definition as the US. Norway only counts those born at 12 weeks gestation who exhibit any signs of life, that's 3 months into a pregnancy. Finland uses the WHO definition of liveborn "'Liveborn' is the term for a newborn who breathes or shows other signs of life after birth" Our own CDC has looked very closely at infant mortality. Ours is terrible in part due to higher rates of prematurity [itself a reflection of poor prenatal care and poverty] But it is not just more premies

infant mortality rates for infants born at 37 weeks of gestation or more are generally higher in the United States than in European countries.

Please, come here and offer thoughts on improving health care for America, but don't make stuff up.

[manaboutown]

I wonder why Mick didn't get his heart surgery done in London rather than in NYC? It would have been "free". Mick Jagger Is '''Feeling Much Better Now''' Post-Heart Surgery | PEOPLE.com

[Boomer]

The answers are somewhere in the middle. Fixing, instead of insidiously dismantling, the ACA is the way to provide truly more affordable access through the open market for those without access through employers.

Also though, the shared premium costs, out-of-pocket, and high deductibles paid by those with employer insurance are now often stunningly high, even for those who have really good jobs. I think those costs might shock those of us who had excellent coverage at no, or very low, cost when we were working.

Continuing protection for pre-existing conditions could be taken away if insurance companies continue to be given more and more power. The protection of pre-existing conditions under the ACA changed many lives for the better.

The complete privatization of Medicare is a goal of those in bed with insurance companies. I like choice which would be taken away if insurance companies end up holding all the cards, which is what total privatization would mean.

We need common sense, fair solutions for our nation’s healthcare problems, solutions with access, affordability, options, and choice. Insurance companies should be included, but not given complete control.

The answers are there, in the middle somewhere, with communication and problem solving skills. But not in grand sweeping gestures or in corrupt backdoor palm-greasing.

[Ben Franklin]

Originally Posted by jebartle

Australia, Germany, France, Canada, UK, Russia to name a few. Will it ever happen in US?

I have several friends living in Canada, France and The UK. I have spoken to each one of them about their system, and they love it. Their systems are more of a social democracy, and as I understand it, they are still market based. Yes, they pay higher taxes, but I wonder if anyone did a cost comparison between the amount of taxes paid vs. the cost of insurance. Just yesterday I had to pay $100 for a generic drug, because of the donut hole system. And it seems most dentists don't take insurance, or they don't take UHC insurance, and so we just had to pay over $700 for an initial visit.

[karostay]

Originally Posted by kathyspear

On a river cruise through The Netherlands and Belgium, tour guide tells us how great it is that they get free college and free healthcare. I ask what they pay in taxes. He says anyone making the equivalent of 50k USD pays about 2/3 in taxes.

k.

Ever buy fuel or alcohol in Canada ? 4 times Us price
nothings free all has cost

[jebartle]

Originally Posted by Boomer

The answers are somewhere in the middle. Fixing, instead of insidiously dismantling, the ACA is the way to provide truly more affordable access through the open market for those without access through employers.

Also though, the shared premium costs, out-of-pocket, and high deductibles paid by those with employer insurance are now often stunningly high, even for those who have really good jobs. I think those costs might shock those of us who had excellent coverage at no, or very low, cost when we were working.

Continuing protection for pre-existing conditions could be taken away if insurance companies continue to be given more and more power. The protection of pre-existing conditions under the ACA changed many lives for the better.

The complete privatization of Medicare is a goal of those in bed with insurance companies. I like choice which would be taken away if insurance companies end up holding all the cards, which is what total privatization would mean.

We need common sense, fair solutions for our nation’s healthcare problems, solutions with access, affordability, options, and choice. Insurance companies should be included, but not given complete control.

The answers are there, in the middle somewhere, with communication and problem solving skills. But not in grand sweeping gestures or in corrupt backdoor palm-greasing.

I agree with you boomer, moderately speaking that those Americans that like their insurance should keep it, along with improvements with ACA.

[blueash]

Originally Posted by kathyspear

On a river cruise through The Netherlands and Belgium, tour guide tells us how great it is that they get free college and free healthcare. I ask what they pay in taxes. He says anyone making the equivalent of 50k USD pays about 2/3 in taxes.

k.

So I looked that up. NETHERLANDS: For 2019 the income tax rate for someone making 50K US = 44K Euro is abt 7K Euro or just short of 8K USD. Whereas 2/3 of 50K would be 33K USD. There are no local income taxes, no additional soc security or Medicare taxes in Netherlands, and the top marginal income tax rate is 51%
Belgium is slightly higher taxes. The marginal rate at 50K USD is 45%. There are some local and SSec taxes. The average Belgian pays 42% taxes. The average American pays 26%. This does not include adjustments for employers' payments.

US healthcare cost is now at over 11K per person per year That alone is 22% of that 50K person's income taxed from 1st dollar earned. And if we are only talking about one wage earner in a family of 4, a total of 44K spent on health care with a 50K income. This is why something needs to change.

[retiredguy123]

I cringe whenever I hear someone say that there should be a "public option" for Government health insurance, and that those who like their employer insurance should be allowed to keep it. I just don't think that would work. I think employers would do whatever they could to encourage or force employees to switch to the Government insurance. So, there would be no employer insurance.