What is the Best Healthcare System and Why?

Uber Genius

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In this season of political upheaval in US politics I would like to draw our attention to one particular issue, namely healthcare. I have many friends from around the world who have weighed in favorably and disfavorably about healthcare in their respective counties. My Dutch friends praise their healthcare system, my German and English friends have mixed experiences both in terms of timeliness and quality of healthcare. What is your experience of American healthcare as compared with another country's healthcare? Many of my graduate school friends were from Nordic countries and felt that access was the big difference.

Please reply with a comparison of your experiences. Also, based on that experience, comment on if the other country's program is single payer, insurance-based, combination private/public.
 

Anthony2019

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I'm not able to comment on the USA as I've never been and have never needed to have access to healthcare there.
I did have toothache once when I was over in Canada, and decided against paying for dentistry whilst I was there and instead waited until I got home. Everyone is eligible for NHS dental treatment, not just those in receipt of benefits, but it is one aspect of the health service where there is a charge - but it is fairly modest and levied at a capped rate.
When I was in France, I had the flu, and I was quite surprised how expensive over the counter medications where compared to at home. But I expect they also have subsided rates for those on benefits or out of work.
We used to have a reciprocal arrangement for healthcare in other EU countries, but I suspect that will change as we have now left the European Union.
The health service in the UK may not be the most efficient in the world, but it is extremely comprehensive and covers everyone resident here. I can see a doctor or any other NHS health professional for free - they will even come to your home if needed - again for no cost. I can phone for an emergency ambulance, go to A&E, or even get a helicopter to the regional major trauma centre - without worrying about any costs for transport, treatment, or aftercare. I have friends, family, colleagues who have had life-saving surgery. I know people with terminal illnesses who have been cared for in hospices without having to pay anything.
The health service is not always perfect, and plenty of people moan about it, but it has served me well for over forty years.
 
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Silmarien

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I don't even have health insurance, since I freelance and the large deductibles make it completely non-cost effective for me. I can get also discounts with my providers for not being insured, so having insurance would actually harm me economically.

The downside is that I've passed out a couple times and have never gotten the heart tests done because the prices are astronomical, and chances are it's just low blood pressure. I should look into getting it done one of these days in Europe, because even if my traveler's health insurance doesn't cover it, I've compared the costs out of pocket to what they would be in the United States, and it's a fraction of the price.

I'm darkly amused by the current coronavirus scare, because between people like me who see no real benefit in being insured at all and those who have to deal with deductibles, our chances of ever containing the thing are non-existent if and when it gets here (assuming it isn't already and nobody knows). People will not be reporting and getting tested because our system disincentivizes that type of responsible behavior.

I've only been to the doctor once outside of the United States (though I honestly should have gone at least three times). It was in Spain, and it was a bit weird, but the traveler's insurance kicked in and I only had to pay for the antibiotics. Even that was quite cheap comparatively, and I usually get killed by pharmacy prices in Spain.
 
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cow451

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In this season of political upheaval in US politics I would like to draw our attention to one particular issue, namely healthcare. I have many friends from around the world who have weighed in favorably and disfavorably about healthcare in their respective counties. My Dutch friends praise their healthcare system, my German and English friends have mixed experiences both in terms of timeliness and quality of healthcare. What is your experience of American healthcare as compared with another country's healthcare? Many of my graduate school friends were from Nordic countries and felt that access was the big difference.

Please reply with a comparison of your experiences. Also, based on that experience, comment on if the other country's program is single payer, insurance-based, combination private/public.
Having had 4 decades of experience in healthcare in the US, the biggest problem is access. Now deductibles are d sad o high, many people covered under employer plans are basically locked out of the system.
 
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cow451

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I was at a restaurant in Georgia today and sat near a guy wearing a MAGA hat. He’s sitting there complaining about not being able to afford adequate care for his chronic condition and racking up huge bills. The irony was palpable.
 
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Curtis.Hilliker

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So many people complain about US health insurance, but my insurance is 100% paid for by my employer, and so are my dependents (and I have a choice to pick ppo, hmo, etc). My expensive prescriptions are covered, which saves me thousands of dollars every month. I thank God for my US health insurance.
 
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cow451

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So many people complain about US health insurance, but my insurance is 100% paid for by my employer, and so are my dependents (and I have a choice to pick ppo, hmo, etc). My expensive prescriptions are covered, which saves me thousands of dollars every month. I thank God for my US health insurance.
Lucky on you. When I was working last year for a regional hospital system, my Family Deductible was equal to fourteen weeks of take home pay.
Without being too personal, what industry are you in?
 
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Curtis.Hilliker

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Lucky on you. When I was working last year for a regional hospital system, my Family Deductible was equal to fourteen weeks of take home pay.
Without being too personal, what industry are you in?

Wowsers that is a lot (sorry to hear that). I’m in the water industry (government entity).
 
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cow451

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The downside to my employment is a relatively low hourly wage.
Add seven thousand to you annual pay and we’d have been equal. But I got Medicare now, and it is far better than any private sector plan I’ve ever had.
 
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Curtis.Hilliker

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Add seven thousand to you annual pay and we’d have been equal. But I got Medicare now, and it is far better than any private sector plan I’ve ever had.

I have Anthem BC/BS it is probably the best I’ve had (considering it is paid for). I’ve had Cigna in the past which was ok but had “in network” problems.
 
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gaara4158

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So many people complain about US health insurance, but my insurance is 100% paid for by my employer, and so are my dependents (and I have a choice to pick ppo, hmo, etc). My expensive prescriptions are covered, which saves me thousands of dollars every month. I thank God for my US health insurance.
If your employer pays 100% of your healthcare, that’s part of your compensation package. Your wages are lower than they should be because of healthcare costs.
 
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Sparagmos

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So many people complain about US health insurance, but my insurance is 100% paid for by my employer, and so are my dependents (and I have a choice to pick ppo, hmo, etc). My expensive prescriptions are covered, which saves me thousands of dollars every month. I thank God for my US health insurance.
What kind of work do you do? I am also one of the fortunate few to have Cadillac insurance. But that’s not due to the U.S. healthcare system.
 
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createdtoworship

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So many people complain about US health insurance, but my insurance is 100% paid for by my employer, and so are my dependents (and I have a choice to pick ppo, hmo, etc). My expensive prescriptions are covered, which saves me thousands of dollars every month. I thank God for my US health insurance.

Lucky on you. When I was working last year for a regional hospital system, my Family Deductible was equal to fourteen weeks of take home pay.
Without being too personal, what industry are you in?

I don't have 100% coverage but we have good insurance, so with everything we are spending less than 200 a month for full family medical, dental, vision and chiropractic coverage, but we are in a teamsters union and we have probably 10,000 people in our medical plan. For small companies it's hard to get a decent medical. Sometimes Dental may be a few hundred in extra costs, if we have several cavities in one visit.
 
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Gene2memE

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What is your experience of American healthcare as compared with another country's healthcare?

Of the five nations I've lived and worked in the US system was the worst. The actual doctors and standard of care was middle of the pack (better than the UK NHS, about the same as Australia and New Zealand public systems, worse than the Aus/NZ private system and the Japanese system generally). However, outside of the actual provision of medical care, the whole system is close to a Kafka-esque nightmare.

Chief complaints are:

Expensive and overly complicated private insurance system. Aggressive sales reps pushing options I didn't need - no, I dont need hip replacement options or blood pressure medication as a 22 year old ski instructor and teachers aide on a temporary working Visa.

Price of basic medicines was way higher than anywhere else - particularly pain medication

Excessive amounts of in hospital bureaucracy - helping a friend deal with her badly broken ankle involved probably three times as many forms as dealing with my own major hand surgery in Australia.

Lawyers. Lawyers everywhere. The one time I was actually injured in the US, I was a passenger in an SUV that got rear ended. By a drunk driver. I spent more time talking to lawyers about not suing the private ambulance company for not arriving fast enough than dealing with actual medical staff.

Dealing with insurance companies over my claim. Because of the above accident, I was ordered off work for two weeks and I had a (4 figure) bill. The insurance claims process took so long that the ski season was finished and I'd travelled back to Australia before my claim was processed. I had to get my credit card company to pressure my travel insurer to pressure its US medical insurance company to complete the claim. Six or seven months later, my insurance finally came through.
 
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WolfGate

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Access is a big positive in the US. Cost is a huge negative. Equity is a huge negative - meaning the same care costs different people vastly different amounts. That inequity tends to hit the working lower class and the lower middle class the hardest, not only do they have less money to pay for healthcare but as a group it costs them more. Overall, due to a variety of reasons, we pay more and get poorer results than most of the other developed countries.

The best system would provide a solid level of guaranteed service to everyone while also allowing flexibility for people to either pay for or buy supplemental insurance to pay for services that are not part of the level of service. I don't really care who administers it. IMHO, that type of plan levels the economic playing field and allows everyone to pursue success in a capitalist society.

Yeah, for someone who is generally conservative politically, I'm a bit of an outlier here. I view health care in the same bucket I do police/fire protection, etc. Basic services that allow people to then fairly compete in the marketplace. And I have to believe given the efficiency data from other countries that a well structured plan would overall cost our population less than what we are paying now - so I consider it fiscally conservative as well.
 
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KCfromNC

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The best system would provide a solid level of guaranteed service to everyone while also allowing flexibility for people to either pay for or buy supplemental insurance to pay for services that are not part of the level of service. I don't really care who administers it.

I think you just described Medicare here in the US.
 
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createdtoworship

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Of the five nations I've lived and worked in the US system was the worst. The actual doctors and standard of care was middle of the pack (better than the UK NHS, about the same as Australia and New Zealand public systems, worse than the Aus/NZ private system and the Japanese system generally). However, outside of the actual provision of medical care, the whole system is close to a Kafka-esque nightmare.

Chief complaints are:

Expensive and overly complicated private insurance system. Aggressive sales reps pushing options I didn't need - no, I dont need hip replacement options or blood pressure medication as a 22 year old ski instructor and teachers aide on a temporary working Visa.

Price of basic medicines was way higher than anywhere else - particularly pain medication

Excessive amounts of in hospital bureaucracy - helping a friend deal with her badly broken ankle involved probably three times as many forms as dealing with my own major hand surgery in Australia.

Lawyers. Lawyers everywhere. The one time I was actually injured in the US, I was a passenger in an SUV that got rear ended. By a drunk driver. I spent more time talking to lawyers about not suing the private ambulance company for not arriving fast enough than dealing with actual medical staff.

Dealing with insurance companies over my claim. Because of the above accident, I was ordered off work for two weeks and I had a (4 figure) bill. The insurance claims process took so long that the ski season was finished and I'd travelled back to Australia before my claim was processed. I had to get my credit card company to pressure my travel insurer to pressure its US medical insurance company to complete the claim. Six or seven months later, my insurance finally came through.

Access is a big positive in the US. Cost is a huge negative. Equity is a huge negative - meaning the same care costs different people vastly different amounts. That inequity tends to hit the working lower class and the lower middle class the hardest, not only do they have less money to pay for healthcare but as a group it costs them more. Overall, due to a variety of reasons, we pay more and get poorer results than most of the other developed countries.

The best system would provide a solid level of guaranteed service to everyone while also allowing flexibility for people to either pay for or buy supplemental insurance to pay for services that are not part of the level of service. I don't really care who administers it. IMHO, that type of plan levels the economic playing field and allows everyone to pursue success in a capitalist society.

Yeah, for someone who is generally conservative politically, I'm a bit of an outlier here. I view health care in the same bucket I do police/fire protection, etc. Basic services that allow people to then fairly compete in the marketplace. And I have to believe given the efficiency data from other countries that a well structured plan would overall cost our population less than what we are paying now - so I consider it fiscally conservative as well.

in our area at least we only have three health providers in our area of california. So our health care is higher than any other counties because we have no competition. If you have 6 or 10 providers then there is more competition for lower rates. So the FED should regulate if there is monopolization of health providers in a certain area. Not only that but the FED should regulate RX. They should make a scale of how much a prescription company can make off a pill. They should cap how much they can make. If a pill costs 5 cents to make it should not cost 200 dollars. So they need to regulate this. I understand it's more complicated because a lot of research is also incorporated into the cost, and that is fine, however a 5 cent pill STILL should not cost 200$ even if there is alot of research. Good research does not mean you can have a 4,000% profit margin on a pill.
 
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cow451

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I don't have 100% coverage but we have good insurance, so with everything we are spending less than 200 a month for full family medical, dental, vision and chiropractic coverage, but we are in a teamsters union...

Sometimes Dental may be a few hundred in extra costs, if we have several cavities in one visit.
Sweet.....unions are commies, you know.
 
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