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Originally Posted by Light of Icarus
Personally I think I'd rather move to canada, whose healthcare, while being a little on the poor side (compaired to high rated american healthcare)
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Just a little on the poor side. Only 30th in the world as opposed to the US, which is highly rated at #37.
We have the highest healthcare spending as a percentage of GDP than any other country
OECD Health Data 2009 - Selected Data
Our average individual expenditure is the highest in the world, three times that of Australia, which is the second highest.
Core Health Indicators
Yet 28% of Americans are uninsured, our system is less effective than cheaper systems, and we have a lower average life expectancy.
"The US has the best system in the world" is a common sound bite, but it's just not true.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Light of Icarus
Well if that was the case then it would be just like everything else government ran. And thus be part of their socialistic movement, not only would that mean a decline in health care and a rise in standardized cost, and one of the only reasons they're even trying to pass this bill is because they know how many people don't have insurance and they're trying to pad their own governmental pocket.
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There are some services that the government is simply the best provider for. All these people complaining about socialism seem happy with government-run police departments, fire departments, post offices, and national defense. It is not socialist for the government to act as a provider for a service if it can do so more efficiently than private industry.
The industry makes money by denying claims and dropping their most expensive customers. All the right wing talking heads go on about the government rationing care, yet the private industry does exactly that when they refuse to cover pre-existing conditions and charge higher rates to "high risk individuals" like domestic violence victims.
If someone can propose an ethical way to run profit-based healthcare, I'd like to see it.