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I believe drugs cost significantly less in other countries. I see no reason why research would fall. Companies are not the only ones capable of doing drug rese
by skh 8y ago
I believe drugs cost significantly less in other countries. I see no reason why research would fall. Companies are not the only ones capable of doing drug research. The Jonas Salk’s of the world mostly do research because it interests them and not because they are looking for millions of dollars in recompense.
I’m not a health care economist and have no expertise in the area but I do know that the following two facts suggests that we can implement a universal single payer healthcare system that is cheaper than our current system.
1. Per capital spending on healthcare in the U.S. far exceeds that of any other nation.
2. We currently have a national healthcare system for members of the military and the elderly.
Is it really hard to imagine that we can implement of a single payer healthcare system that is government run?
- danielvf 8y ago> "We currently have a national healthcare system for members of the military..." I know quite a few veterans of all ages. it's amazing how utterly screwed up in bureaucracy the VA can be. Hiring a lawyer to get treatment isn't uncommon, and I think two acquaintances have have ended up bringing their US congressman in. While healthcare in the US is way too expensive, I don't think I'd trade my current setup for the VA.
- skh 8y agoThe VA is not military. I specifically said military to avoid talking about the VA. Government sponsored healthcare can certainly be bad but it doesn’t have to be. People on Medicare like it for the most part. They certainly don’t want to be taken off of it.
- JshWright 8y agoThey like Medicare a lot, actually. More than people with private insurance like their provider.
- krupan 8y agoYes, but doctors hate Medicare. They have to charge non-Medicare patients more in order to subsidize their low paying Medicare patients. What happens when all patients are Medicare patients?
- toomuchtodo 8y agoDoctors (specialists specifically) take a reduction in pay or leave the country for another healthcare market that would maintain their current inflated pay (which doesn’t exist).
- howard941 8y agoThey can do what our more courageous laborer brethren did back in the 20th century: Organize and engage in collective bargaining. It's the only way out for the lot of us.