England & Canada question

[blue]

phesina should have started a new thread for her question. The first reply is way to early for a thread highjack.

Im not suprised to see the Annenberg Foundation backing up Obama's push for HCR. Im also not suprised that their sources for their rebultle only go back to 2008.

In all my years of being uninsured I, like our Canadian and English friends, have never been denied health care. Unlike our Canadian and English friends, I paid for it myself.

My friend broke his leg skiing in BC, he had to take a taxi from MT Whistler to the nearest hospital and that was the first of his dislike for the way BC aplies their health care.

My stepdad was born and raised in BC and has nothing good to say about the health care system there.

I know in Canada HC differs from province to province so maybe Sparks will chime in with her experience.

[DarntheCat]

I, having lived in the most (Advanced) Socialist country I know of, Germany, and some of the worst. I can say that IMHO Sociallized medicine is a good thing. There are positives and negatives to everything, to say that the average person will receive care the same as a Congressman or Senator is ridiculous in the extreme, however, not one time did I see an Emergency Room Administrator ask for Insurance Paperwork. Imeadiate care was the priority, even there you could seek out a Private Physician if you were disatisfied with the level of care that you were receiving from the Subsidized Health Care Provider. The down side was that the quality of care was not as high as I am used to, but it did seem the more serious the illness or injury the better the care.

[Louie and me]

My husband had a heart attack at age 45, followed by quadruple bypass surgery. At age 52 he required both hips be replaced and at age 58 and again at 61 he required angioplasti with stents because of continuing CAD. He is also diabetic. We in Ontario Canada are covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan and all of these procedures were covered by the plan with no cost to us. We are required to pay for drugs however fortunately we have an extended health plan from my former work that covers 80% of the cost and now that I am over 65, OHIP covers all the cost for my drugs also. I cannot imagine what our life would have been like without OHIP but I suspect my husband would not have survived.
There are indeed sometimes wait times for elective surgeries (we have never experienced any) but I have never heard of anyone having to wait for life saving or emergency surgery.

[Nomilynn]

Unlike our Canadian and English friends, I paid for it myself.

I do pay for my health care. It costs $54 a month, which is fortunately paid for by my employer (which has never happened for me before; I've always had to pay for it on my own before ) and I am completely covered for anything I need. Then, my extended health is also paid for by my employer. However, at my previous job, it was not - it was decucted of my paycheque every pay and I got a good rate through a group plan.

To say that we "don't pay" is actually incorrect. We do pay - but rather than having to may crazy amounts when an emergency happens, we pay a small amount all the time in order to be able to utilize the health care system when need be.

[kitten645]

I agree that it's nice to have a rational discussion. I generally immediately delete these types of emails because what irratates me more than anything is scare tactics. That's all that email is. Bravo to you for actually checking FACTS! I'm still sorting thru the information myself. I do think our system currently stinks. I also thing there is no perfect solution but things could certainly be improved. I was paying nearly $500 a month to be on Cobra when I lost my job a while back. THAT didn't last long. To justify $500 I'd have to move into the hospital! I think insurance companies and some doctors have been riding the gravy train too long and that they need to be held accountable.
Claudia

[blue]

I do pay for my health care. It costs $54 a month, which is fortunately paid for by my employer (which has never happened for me before; I've always had to pay for it on my own before ) and I am completely covered for anything I need. Then, my extended health is also paid for by my employer. However, at my previous job, it was not - it was decucted of my paycheque every pay and I got a good rate through a group plan.

To say that we "don't pay" is actually incorrect. We do pay - but rather than having to may crazy amounts when an emergency happens, we pay a small amount all the time in order to be able to utilize the health care system when need be.

Yes you did/do pay/paid for it. If your employer pays your premiums that is just like it being deducted from your pay check.

When I say I paid for it, I mean I paid for it out of my money because I have no insurance. I dont want .GOV deciding my insurance coverage. If I choose to work for a company that offers insurance benefits that is my and the companies business, not .GOV's.

I get more money per hour without health care premiums because the company isnt paying them and they arent being taken out of my paycheck.

When I worked in the warehouse, the insurance was a good deal and I took it. when I worked as an electritian it wasnt so I didnt have insurance.

So if its deducted or taxed, in your case its the same thing, you do pay for it. You also pay for allmost everybody elses.

[Nomilynn]

This is the first job I've had where my benefits are over and above my pay scale, so in actual fact, I am not paying anything for it this time. I'm paid a basic rate of pay, PLUS premiums and benefits. With my last job, my provincial health care came out of my own pocket - so I paid for it on my own.

I still would rather pay these premiums out of pocket than go to a system like that of the USA - without it, I would not have survived being laid off this past year because I would not have been able to pay for my prescriptions. As long as I pay my monthly premiums, I am covered and for me, at least, it's a way better system.

[blue]

Enough of the thread highjack, the OP's question has been answered.

[Lady's Human]

Whodathunkit? Blue's a moderator?

[blue]

Whodathunkit? Blue's a moderator?

I got banned from the last site I was a moderator on.

The OP's 4 questions could have been answerred more easily without the 5th question.

No socialist health care system, that I know of, says anybody over a certain age is cut of from certain procedures. There are systems that take age into account regaurding certain procedures.

IE. someone who is 50 will get a heart stint before someone who is 65. Someone who is 45 will get a hip replacement before an 78 year old. And yes I pulled those numbers out of the air.

[Medusa]

Enough of the thread highjack, the OP's question has been answered.

Monica asked questions and people are answering. How is that highjacking? Seriously, blue, go have another helping of bacon. You're cranky.

[Edwina's Secretary]

Why just Canada and the UK? Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, etc. etc. also have so-called Universal Healthcare.

It would be easier to list developed nations that do NOT have it.

In addition to asking how people like it...you should ask how well does it work. If Canada and UK deny medical care to the elderly - you would expect to see shorter life expectancy. The US is 24th in life expectancy - compared to UK at 14th and Canada at 12th.

In overall measurement of the quality of healthcare (infant mortality, etc.) the US ranks 37th.

Yet the only country that spends more on healthcare as a percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the Marshall Islands.

You can read more about the US compared to other countries at World Health Organization http://www.who.int/en/

[Nomilynn]

Enough of the thread highjack, the OP's question has been answered.

I certainly hope this was not directed toward me, as my answers have been in response to the original questions and the ensuing responses to my posts. I think that counts as staying on topic.

I recently saw on the news that someone had hired a Canadian to come to the states and do an add against the Canadian Health System, because she had a bad experience and ended up having surgery in the US (I think she had to remortgage her house to pay for it). I think it is important to say that everyone has to be on top of their own health. If you don't like the answer from your own doctor, go see another one. That is another advantage to this system - you can see whatever doctor you want, anywhere in the province, and it doesn't cost you anything to do it and get 2nd opinions.

[Cataholic]

I pay for health insurance. I just paid $133 for a 20 day supply of antibiotics for J, another sinus infection. Thank GOD that the ENT didn't require a office visit ($238), and just called in the prescription. With my health insurance, the company pays the first $2000. I pay the next $3000. LOL. AND I pay the premiums. For what? Ever have a child need therapy? J's speech is $178 a week. Do the math...I am paying for the cruddiest coverage.

We need a change to our health care system. It has to start with those dirty words- insurance companies.

[phesina]

I'm the evil hijacker, because after Marigold posted her questions about the English and Canadian systems, I also asked our British and Canadian friends (and, for that matter, those of other countries with national health plans) whether they'd rather have a system like ours.

I certainly wasn't trying to "hijack" any discussion, which I'm not sure what that means but I gather it implies I'm trying to steer it towards a particular point of view. I'm not, but I would also like facts and honest answers pro and con regarding the different systems, which it seemed to me was what Marigold was looking for.

This is a HUGE issue in our country right now, and I would like to know as much as I can on just what we are talking about here and what might be at stake.. based on FACTS, not on lies, which the e-mail Marigold got appears to be full of and which are being disseminated all around.

What ARE the down-sides of national health care systems? (I already have pretty good ideas of the down-sides of ours.)

Are there many people in those countries who would prefer a system like ours? And if so, do you have actual experience of ours, or if not, what do you hear about it or know about it in your country?

In all my years of being uninsured I, like our Canadian and English friends, have never been denied health care. Unlike our Canadian and English friends, I paid for it myself.

Blue, how many thousands and thousands of dollars are you talking about here? Was this health care for anything like lengthy hospitalizations or extensive surgery or intensive-care-unit stays or treatment for degenerative diseases? And I take it that if you ever are faced with such, you'll be able to pay for it yourself?

My stepdad was born and raised in BC and has nothing good to say about the health care system there.

I know in Canada HC differs from province to province so maybe Sparks will chime in with her experience.

Blue, I would really like to hear more about what your stepdad does not like about the Canadian system. Does he live in this country now? If so, I'd like to hear his thoughts on our system and why he thinks it is better. Thank you.

And I hope that Sparks WILL contribute to this discussion, since she has lived with both systems and will be able to speak with experience about the differences and how they have affected the lives of her and her family.