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Originally Posted by j8ear
Canada has an abysmal healthcare system. Abysmal. Doctors and other health care professionals fleeing the country in droves, at their earliest possible opportunity, to practice, those who can afford it looking south of the 49th to stay alive and middle class taxpayers KEEPING 45 cents on every dollar they make (that's a 55% payroll tax)...and then paying 15-20 percent sales tax on everything they buy. People waiting six months to get an appointment, and every tom, dick and harry stressing the emergency rooms with the sniffles.
It is not cheaper and it is not better. Not by a long shot.
There is ONE place and only one place on this entire planet that is the envy of every health care professional, and patient in need of medical care...and it is right here in the good old US of A.
Please don't misunderstand me by assuming I don't think there is room for improvement..there is...there always is and there always will be.
I have some thoughts on these needed improvements...but must get home to the little one. A brief preview:
1. Lawsuit reform
2. Liabilty reform
3. Expectation realignment. Sorry but smokers, alchy's, obese, and other high risk life style choosers don't get to live like the rest of us who didn't abuse our temple, imho.
4. Pharmacuetical distribution changes.
Involving the government in some universal health care wealth redistribution ponzi scheme will compound the problem, vastly deteriorating quality of care and greatly increasing the costs of this care. Just like it has happened everywhere else this utopia scheme was perputrated.
I hear the flawed argument about superior health care in countries with socialized medicine...unfortunately I have never seen the argument have any validity. The poster I quoted above is no exception.
-bear
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Bear,
Thank you for a well thought out post, some good arguments on the other side.
See I like the idea of a sliding scale based on income and dependants for medical care, moreso than just a full fledged "free" healthcare.
The argument this takes away someone's desire to earn more to me is petty and flawed because most people are driven to buy products. This would allow more money in their pockets, to spend more freely.
With a universal healthcare system though, companies like GM and Ford could put the savings not only into payroll, but into badly needed R&D and help them compete against the imports.
Granted the rich will always pay more (but perhaps less of a %age of their income than they do now), no matter what system we have.... but as the Right loves to say life isn't fair.
As for your 4 proposals, 1,2 and 4 need to be done.
However 3, is a punishment, addiction is NOT a choice, nor is obesity and to continue to treat it as such is wrong.
What about the jogger who after years of running on asphalt blows his knee? We have been told for years studies show that jogging on asphalt can cause knee and joint problems.
Who determines what is high risk? That sounds like in the end an escape route to just scrap any reform.
At the very least, by putting any distinction on lifestyle and such, would allow more governmental control into our lives.
By your proposal in #3 people with hereditary problems such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and so on would be treated differently than those born perfect? Granted those aren't high risk lifestyles, but study after study shows most diseases are hereditary.
Besides smoking and alcohol taxes really help keep income taxes down. Tax them more, to help pay for their medical care, I could live with that, but to dictate that they wouldn't get medical care or less care, is just wrong. Just have them pay more for their vices/addictions/habits whichever you choose to call them.