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It was indeed sarcastic, and in hindsight I apologise to anyone irritated by it. But yeah, it seems that a lot of US-based comments like to point out how terrib

It was indeed sarcastic, and in hindsight I apologise to anyone irritated by it. But yeah, it seems that a lot of US-based comments like to point out how terrible the alternative to paid healthcare is in places like India etc, but completely ignore the fact that comparable nations (i.e. Australia, Canada, etc) all have functional socialist-esque healthcare and it's kind of fantastic. My personal opinion is that people are too selfish (I guess?) to even consider free healthcare as an option. At least, from the third person perspective, this is how it appears.

analog31 8y ago
You might not be getting an accurate perspective of sentiment in the US. A lot of people in the US favor universal health care in some form or fashion. There are at least as many opinions on how to implement it, as there are countries with better systems. But the opposition is strong too. Consider that if health care costs us twice as much as in other countries, it means someone is making twice as much, and they aren't going to give up that money without a fight.
- maxxxxx 8y ago
  Exactly. All the "waste" is someone's profit and they will for it tooth and nail.
maxxxxx 8y ago
People in the US have been indoctrinated by a lot of propaganda and not many see how things are outside the country. They just have never seen anything else.
murph-almighty 8y ago
I'm basically pro-universal healthcare at this point in some way, shape or form, but the one thing I don't understand is the role of private insurance companies in the aftermath. They can't really just... disappear. People have jobs there, and stockholders own investments in these companies. You'd have to answer to a significant amount of people. I feel like we've effectively enmeshed private interests so deeply into the US healthcare system that I don't know what it would look like without it. >My personal opinion is that people are too selfish (I guess?) to even consider free healthcare as an option. I believe that a significant amount of people in the US are too selfish to pay their taxes, let alone for universal healthcare, no matter what long-term figures you show them, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
- King-Aaron 8y ago
  For sure, private health insurers exist and in a big way. In Australia for instance, there's still privately owned hospitals which do offer a more "premium" level of service - i.e. better rooms, less surgical waiting times, ammenities, often where specialists have their offices, etc. Health insurance gives the option to use these hospitals and the insurer covers the majority of the costs. There's sometimes a 'gap' cost to pay. The thing is, it's not like you might die in the public side of things and live in the private side - you'll get the same kind of primary care. But health insurance becomes a premium service for those who want it. I'm sure there's a lot more to the story as well, but it's one of those things that I'm not an especially full bottle on.

analog31 8y ago

You might not be getting an accurate perspective of sentiment in the US. A lot of people in the US favor universal health care in some form or fashion. There are at least as many opinions on how to implement it, as there are countries with better systems. But the opposition is strong too. Consider that if health care costs us twice as much as in other countries, it means someone is making twice as much, and they aren't going to give up that money without a fight.

maxxxxx 8y ago
Exactly. All the "waste" is someone's profit and they will for it tooth and nail.

maxxxxx 8y ago

People in the US have been indoctrinated by a lot of propaganda and not many see how things are outside the country. They just have never seen anything else.

murph-almighty 8y ago

I'm basically pro-universal healthcare at this point in some way, shape or form, but the one thing I don't understand is the role of private insurance companies in the aftermath. They can't really just... disappear. People have jobs there, and stockholders own investments in these companies. You'd have to answer to a significant amount of people. I feel like we've effectively enmeshed private interests so deeply into the US healthcare system that I don't know what it would look like without it. >My personal opinion is that people are too selfish (I guess?) to even consider free healthcare as an option. I believe that a significant amount of people in the US are too selfish to pay their taxes, let alone for universal healthcare, no matter what long-term figures you show them, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

King-Aaron 8y ago
For sure, private health insurers exist and in a big way. In Australia for instance, there's still privately owned hospitals which do offer a more "premium" level of service - i.e. better rooms, less surgical waiting times, ammenities, often where specialists have their offices, etc. Health insurance gives the option to use these hospitals and the insurer covers the majority of the costs. There's sometimes a 'gap' cost to pay. The thing is, it's not like you might die in the public side of things and live in the private side - you'll get the same kind of primary care. But health insurance becomes a premium service for those who want it. I'm sure there's a lot more to the story as well, but it's one of those things that I'm not an especially full bottle on.