Good post and coming from the UK i can tell you the NHS was one of the greatest things ever done in this country.

As far as the highlighted quote; mainly rich Republican supporters are opposed to the idea of free healthcare. The reason is because they have enough money to pay for it, but they're so warped and twisted that, because they have the money to pay for it, they don't want others to get it for nothing. Conveniently forgetting that they and their families would also benefit from it.

It's an attitude that, coming from the UK, i can't begin to understand. But that seems to be American society in so many ways and degrees; divided and at odds with one another.

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Luck won't do it and ignorance can't

George Van Eps.

A timely post...

My wife and I have a good friend who is right now in the UK to bury her Mother who suffered from Cancer (funeral is tomorrow).

Throughout the entire 3-year ordeal, she was frustrated and despondent at the level of care and the delays imposed by their National Healthcare system that her mother received. She wanted to bring her mother over here for treatment, but simply couldn't afford it.

We have a mutual friend, an MD, who is Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Oncology. He regularly met with her to help monitor and guide her through the ordeal, and he was given access to the mother's Test and Lab results to review and advise her.

Chemo and other treatments were delayed due to a backlog of patients needing similar care.

He stated on several occasions that the regimen and timeliness of her Mother's care was way below the norms here in the US and likely contributed to an accelerated advancement of the disease.

That while her Mother would have likely succumbed to the disease eventually, had she received treatment here, based on similar cases with similar results, her life would have been prolonged by as much as 10 years, but certainly 5 years.

Nationalized Healthcare does result in lesser care for the individual in order that more can be treated... sounds OK unless you're the one needing treatment.

The Wealthy will still have access to private, individualized healthcare, while the rest of us will see a reduction in the overall Quality of care.

This MD is a Fellow at the Mayo Clinic, and he said they are inundated by people from the UK and Canada who are able to pay for higher levels of care.

cheers!

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"...they're so warped and twisted... "

Isn't that just a little bit over the Top.. ??

Do you really need to be so inflammatory in order to make you point..??

cheers!

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Two words: Quality healthcare. There is a reason why many people come to the US from their countries with "free" universal healthcare to get the QUALITY healthcare they need in a TIMELY manner. Canadians get healthcare in the USA because some patients can't wait a year for a hip replacement, or 6 months for a MRI scan.

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"Music is what feelings sound like"

Da Da Da Da....DAdada.........Good night ladies and gentlemen! This post is official dead and we the people won! I saw karl rove holding a sign on the freeway exit this morning! The sign said "Will work for political contributions, get your red hot vouchers, right here, folks!" Da Da Da Da....Dadada.......................!

To all those outside the US. The republicans/conservatives do want everyone to have health care. The argument is that conservatives want it managed on the state level and not the federal. The idea behind our way of life is that the states maintain power over the federal government, so that the power is closer to the citizens. We are moving away from this.

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My ability to spell is in direct proportion to the amount of coffee I've had.

No they don't. They are perfectly happy with the status quo being maintained wherein only those who have the financial wherewithal can afford health cover.

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Luck won't do it and ignorance can't

George Van Eps.

Very insightful post !

But, there's one fundamental you cannot escape and that is:

You cannot reduce the cost of Healthcare without reducing the cost of Healthcare !

When I was born (same year as the Strat), a Doctor made 5 times the average wage... today they make 15 times.

Nurses made the average wage, now they make 2.5 times the average wage.

Add in the Ins. Cos., Pharmas, etc. and the costs have exploded.

People do not easily surrender advantages, so none of the Healthcare workers are going to accept a rollback of their wages. They will cite the high cost of Tuition and Malpractice Ins., etc. They are not wrong... it IS a very multi-faceted problem.

Government always does a much better job of serving the Masses than the Individual.

Individuals are usually better served in the profit-driven, Private Sector, so I suspect that is where the answer lies.

But, in order for that to happen, we need strong political leaders who will take on Torte Reform, perhaps give Tuition Assistance to Healthcare Workers, if not capping Tuition costs altogether (perhaps in exchange for a number of years of Community Service by the recipients to serve Medicare and Low-Income cases). Capping the profit Pharmas can make, like the extreme of some cases - $50/pill.

But, what is the likelyhood of that..??

What the Government is attempting right now is merely Window-Dressing, Smoke & Mirrors, designed only to gain votes for the politicians. It ultimately will not work and only once the existing system is dismantled will the People realize it. By then it will be too late.

cheers!

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Your logic is infallible. How can I argue with that?



Yes, you nailed it when you mentioned tort reform. Also, allowing insurance to compete beyond state lines. The average liability insurance for a doctor is about 100,000 a year. For each doctor in the practice. Is it any wonder why health care is so expensive? We just don't have the lobbying leverage that the lawyers have. This is all so much bigger than the talking points suggest.

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My ability to spell is in direct proportion to the amount of coffee I've had.

My Brother-in-Law is Mayo-trained, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, is Board Certified in Urology, Micro-Surgery and Oncology. Is Head of the Urology Dept. of one of the 5 largest hospitals in the Country... his Urology Wing alone is 300 beds.

He has been in practice for 28 years, has NEVER had a malpractice case brought against him, but his annual malpractice ins. premium is $1,000,000 + - YEP... ONE MILLION SIMOLEONS !!!

There is a lot of malpractice litigation in his field, so essentially he is paying for others' lawsuits.

He states that the reason is mostly patients who either don't take care of themselves, or wait too long before seeking treatment, then blame the Doctor for the outcome.

cheers!

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'11 FSR Am. Vtg. Ltd. Ed. CAR '57 Stratocaster (SN# LE02639)
'14 American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster
'12 Telebration Empress Telecaster
'99 Deluxe Nashville Telecaster
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'10 Heritage H-535
'99 Martin DC-1E
'13 Lanikai Tenor Ukulele

^^^^ Funny how we manage it in the UK isn't it? it's called the NHS.

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Luck won't do it and ignorance can't

George Van Eps.

Lets see total Population of the UK = 63 million
US = 330 million
Little bit different tryin to give 330 million people free health care.

When fatcat pays one mil plus a year insurance then he must bring in 50 mil a year! More than 300 beds means mo money, mo money, mo taken' to the cleaners! The insurance company is another legal rip off! I worked for one for 2 1/4 years. Even though it was an insurance company, they gave us peon employees a junk humana policy, which cost me almost as much as not having insurance! No wonder they went through those law suits! We need a national health plan! Many Brits and Canadians are happy with their health plan. We the people here will be also! We all have the right to own properties and, affortable college education as well! Don't even think about messing with our unions either! Look at me I'm not afraid! I pay taxes and I'm a law abiding American! You can't scare us with your phoney $@! amber alert nonsense no more! Game over! The sky is not falling!

Right on. I was worried we were headed for full-force plutocracy. Thank you, my fellow Americans.

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