Ok I was playing WoW (World of Warcraft) today and chatting with a few of my online buddies and the topic of National Health Care came up. I know this is hot topic for a lot of people so I'm going to try and approach it delicately. Ok, who am I kidding I never approach anything delicately.
Question: Why doesn't the USA have National Health Care? Answer: Greed.
that's right folks, the people on the upper end of the health care spectrum make way too much money to ever consider endorsing a National system. While the people on the lower end of the spectrum i.e. ME, make very little money and would welcome a standard wage across the board.
National Health Care also does some pretty drastic things like (gasp) makes sure everyone gets equal treatment regardless of income bracket, provides medications to those who can't afford it. Ya, that's right Granny can get her blood pressure meds and not have to eat cat food for a month to afford it! If you need a transplant you get it... Even if you cant pay for a single penny of the procedure or follow up care. Sure you may be on a list for awhile, but you'll get the same shot everyone else gets. You'll get the same meds, not ones dumbed down or generics.. The SAME.
National Health Care also generally runs the ambulance services. Do you think that any owner of a private ambulance service wants to turn over control to the government? Let me think a second . . . Uh, no. There is way too much money in private health care, whether it is ambulance service or privately owned hospitals. Doctors in most areas of the US are private contractors. Look on the walls of most any ER! The doctors don't work for the hospital you are being treated at. The hospitals hire these contractors or contractor groups. National Health Care would put all of these people under one banner. It would regulate pay across the board for quality of service. If you were a year 1 doctor with XX certification you would make the exact same coin as another year 1 doctor with the same certification.
As it stands now hospitals are set up very differerntly by the JACO standard. Then you have Trauma hospitals, level 1,2,3. Wouldn't it be easier and better for the patients if the doctors with the greatest expertise were placed in the hospitals where they were needed most... Regardless of where they were located?
wouldn't it be nice to know that if you called for an ambulance in a "bad" part of town that you would get an ambulance in a timely manner?
Sound off guys, I wanna know your input.
Z
6 comments:
This guy is great. He's a med student with some great ideas about Healthcare in the U.S. Click on the "SINGLE-PAYER!" link in the upper right hand corner. It's really interesting because it's a solution, not just another angle of the problem. Check it out ;)
http://www.grahamazon.com/ I'm an ass, forgot to post the link. Sorry!
I'll check it out, thanks for the link.
Z
I read the entire article on single payer insurance and it does make sense, that is the sole reason the gubment will never go for it.
Z
Lots of comments tonight... from me anyways. Taken from Over my med body!: "Dr. Thompson, frequently comments on my blog, and left this zinger today: 'I personally see nothing wrong with health savings accounts and allowing patients to be in charge of their health care decision'".
Holy CRAP!!! Interesting example- I commented this on his board too: "This past semester, I had about 7 episodes of idiopathic anaphylaxis. I had never had one before, and yes, they still really don’t know why I was having the reactions in the first place. But I now have thousands and thousands of dollars in debt (WITH insurance in place) that I don’t know what to do with.
'I personally see nothing wrong with health savings accounts and allowing patients to be in charge of their health care decisions.' What happens to me then? The next time I have a reaction, I’m supposed to decide if I can intubate myself rather than going to the ER? Because I cost too much? No, I think that’s a decision for a doctor to make."
This was interesting because that comment came from a DOC!!!
The health care systems in the US are sorely out-dated, and unless we all raise a fuss.. nothing will ever be changed.
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