5 ms·

The funding for universal health care would have to come from somewhere, probably higher taxes. So instead of being invested, the money would be stuffed into an

The funding for universal health care would have to come from somewhere, probably higher taxes. So instead of being invested, the money would be stuffed into an inefficient system. There's also the matter of scale, US system would be far larger than any individual Euro country and thus more expensive due to bureaucracy. Also the issue of the US having much lower population density and how to handle that, ie are rural people going to have to drive 5 hours to get the health care their taxes pay for? Also worth noting that the US is essentially the profit center for the entire world's pharma industry. If that was eliminated investment would be reduced globally, not just the US. US citizens are currently subsidizing European countries public healthcare. https://www.ibtimes.com/how-us-subsidizes-cheap-drugs-europe-2112662 https://www.ibtimes.com/how-us-subsidizes-cheap-drugs-europe...

allannienhuis 8y ago
re: density- Canada has even lower pop density than the US, and our universal health care system compares very favourably. Your arguments seem like nothing more than fear-mongering to me.
- throwawy3589 8y ago
  around 80% of Canada's population lives within 100 miles of the US boarder. Canada's density is skewed by northern land with nobody living there. https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-2c86ad127d43c7e1f9a62d2ec8a7b814 https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-2c86ad127d43c7e1f9a62d...
  - your-nanny 8y ago
    so? you think most Canadians cross the border to go to the doctor? pretty laughable
    - throwawy3589 8y ago
      No, but having to provide health care to citizens in rural areas is expensive. Many elderly citizens wouldn't be able to travel to large cities to get the health care their taxes paid for. This is an issue that's largely non-existent in europe.
      - allannienhuis 8y ago
        Basic health care is available in most rural areas without issue. Yes there are some issues with attracting doctors & specialist to live outside major metro areas, but my understanding is that's true in the U.S. as well. I live a rural area a 3hr drive (including ferry time) from a major city centre, but have a nice public health clinic 15 minutes from my house. Ambulances can reach my home in 8 minutes. We have a quite capable hospital 45 minutes drive away which has air evac capability. Advanced healthcare (eg cancer, cardiac care) is available at regional hospitals, with no-cost transport for care. I had a heart attack a couple of months ago, and received world-class care including open-heart surgery. During that time of extreme stress for me and my family, not for one minute did I think about the financial consequences other than missing some income while I was unable to work. I don't think of our medical system as being 'free' - I paid for that care through my taxes and a modest premium (today around $75/month per person - BC is I think the last province to still have user-paid premiums and they're scheduled to be phased out over the next couple of years). I'm really happy with the value for $ spent. Our health care system costs taxpayers just over $4,000 CAD per person per year. Other figures put the total health care spending (including other services such as dental, chiropractic care, etc) at about $6,000 CAD /person/year. OECD sourced figures put the U.S at about $12,000 CAD /person/year. The statement that universal health care must be more expensive than a privately administered system ("money would be stuffed into an inefficient system") is simply a myth. Again, it seems like your comments are nothing but fear-mongering. Perhaps you honestly believe them. Please consider that you might be simply repeating the arguments you've been given by those with a vested interest in keeping the U.S. system as it is now in place. To be fair: our Canadian system isn't perfect. Some people fall through the cracks. Some people fight with their insurer (the government) about coverage for rare chronic conditions. Not everyone is completely happy with the system or the treatment they receive. I'm pretty certain that those same statements can be made of any health care system in the world. But for the vast majority of our citizens, including those like me that live in fairly rural areas, it functions pretty well. https://www.cihi.ca/en/how-does-canadas-health-spending-compare-internationally https://www.cihi.ca/en/how-does-canadas-health-spending-comp...
iknowstuff 8y ago
Just have separate healthcare systems for each state. There, problem solved.

allannienhuis 8y ago

re: density- Canada has even lower pop density than the US, and our universal health care system compares very favourably. Your arguments seem like nothing more than fear-mongering to me.

throwawy3589 8y ago
around 80% of Canada's population lives within 100 miles of the US boarder. Canada's density is skewed by northern land with nobody living there. https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-2c86ad127d43c7e1f9a62d2ec8a7b814 https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-2c86ad127d43c7e1f9a62d...
- your-nanny 8y ago
  so? you think most Canadians cross the border to go to the doctor? pretty laughable
  - throwawy3589 8y ago
    No, but having to provide health care to citizens in rural areas is expensive. Many elderly citizens wouldn't be able to travel to large cities to get the health care their taxes paid for. This is an issue that's largely non-existent in europe.
    - allannienhuis 8y ago
      Basic health care is available in most rural areas without issue. Yes there are some issues with attracting doctors & specialist to live outside major metro areas, but my understanding is that's true in the U.S. as well. I live a rural area a 3hr drive (including ferry time) from a major city centre, but have a nice public health clinic 15 minutes from my house. Ambulances can reach my home in 8 minutes. We have a quite capable hospital 45 minutes drive away which has air evac capability. Advanced healthcare (eg cancer, cardiac care) is available at regional hospitals, with no-cost transport for care. I had a heart attack a couple of months ago, and received world-class care including open-heart surgery. During that time of extreme stress for me and my family, not for one minute did I think about the financial consequences other than missing some income while I was unable to work. I don't think of our medical system as being 'free' - I paid for that care through my taxes and a modest premium (today around $75/month per person - BC is I think the last province to still have user-paid premiums and they're scheduled to be phased out over the next couple of years). I'm really happy with the value for $ spent. Our health care system costs taxpayers just over $4,000 CAD per person per year. Other figures put the total health care spending (including other services such as dental, chiropractic care, etc) at about $6,000 CAD /person/year. OECD sourced figures put the U.S at about $12,000 CAD /person/year. The statement that universal health care must be more expensive than a privately administered system ("money would be stuffed into an inefficient system") is simply a myth. Again, it seems like your comments are nothing but fear-mongering. Perhaps you honestly believe them. Please consider that you might be simply repeating the arguments you've been given by those with a vested interest in keeping the U.S. system as it is now in place. To be fair: our Canadian system isn't perfect. Some people fall through the cracks. Some people fight with their insurer (the government) about coverage for rare chronic conditions. Not everyone is completely happy with the system or the treatment they receive. I'm pretty certain that those same statements can be made of any health care system in the world. But for the vast majority of our citizens, including those like me that live in fairly rural areas, it functions pretty well. https://www.cihi.ca/en/how-does-canadas-health-spending-compare-internationally https://www.cihi.ca/en/how-does-canadas-health-spending-comp...

iknowstuff 8y ago

Just have separate healthcare systems for each state. There, problem solved.