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Actually, Americans are ignorant of the outside world, but not in the way that you're painting. They generally think that Europe has socialized single-payer hea

Actually, Americans are ignorant of the outside world, but not in the way that you're painting. They generally think that Europe has socialized single-payer healthcare, which is mostly not true (a few European countries, like the UK, do, but most have an insurance-based system). They also think that most of the world has access to the quality of care that people do in the US (nope). They also think doctors and nurses get paid the same outside the US (far from it.) They think that government healthcare means that there will be nobody to say no to expensive procedures (very untrue: there will always be a bureaucrat scrutinizing how much is spent on a patient). The media promotes all of these myths, with the eventual goal of a complete government takeover of health care. We can add one bonus myth here too: the idea that the US healthcare system leaves people to die if they have no money and no insurance. Nope! If you show up at any emergency room, they cannot refuse treatment. And of course, getting insurance for the poor or lower-middle class is easier than ever due to Obamacare. So while it's far from a perfect system, it's a lot better than the media paints it as. And the government alternatives are not utopian. See https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/mar/02/private-healthcare-boom-two-tier-system-uk https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/mar/02/private-heal...

forgetfreeman 4y ago
I literally watched a dude die waiting to be seen in an ER in the US. They are absolutely required to treat but nobody said anything about how they prioritize patients when the ER is busy. Some more news for you, you can't waltz into the hospital with any number of chronic or life threatening conditions and expect to get effective treatment. You'll get the bare minimum required to stabilize your condition in the moment then you're out the door. Not sure what you're stanning here.
- jujube3 4y ago
  I have personally seen the opposite -- a relative came into the hospital with no healthcare (even Obamacare which he was 100% eligible for, but simply forgot to sign up for) and got the best possible healthcare. And eventually got retroactively put on Medicare, so that he didn't have to pay. In any case, people die waiting for service with single-payer healthcare as well. Before you try to reform the system, try to understand how the system actually works rather than just repeating talking points.
  - forgetfreeman 4y ago
    Your anecdote does not disprove the general case. If you walk into a hospital dead broke with no insurance with a chronic but not immediately life-threatening condition you're not getting the same level of care an individual would if they had the ability to pay for ongoing treatment. I've got a couple ER nurses I can rope into the conversation that can confirm that if you'd care to try to continue arguing the point. As far as healthcare reform goes there's nothing particularly complicated about having a multi-billion dollar industry sieve funds that could be better spent on actual healthcare providers. There is also the minor issue of America's medical bankruptcy rates compared against literally every other industrialized nation on the planet, and the small matter of us having both the most expensive (by a wide margin) and one of the least effective healthcare systems of any 1st world country. Again, what the fuck are you stanning over there?

forgetfreeman 4y ago

I literally watched a dude die waiting to be seen in an ER in the US. They are absolutely required to treat but nobody said anything about how they prioritize patients when the ER is busy. Some more news for you, you can't waltz into the hospital with any number of chronic or life threatening conditions and expect to get effective treatment. You'll get the bare minimum required to stabilize your condition in the moment then you're out the door. Not sure what you're stanning here.

jujube3 4y ago
I have personally seen the opposite -- a relative came into the hospital with no healthcare (even Obamacare which he was 100% eligible for, but simply forgot to sign up for) and got the best possible healthcare. And eventually got retroactively put on Medicare, so that he didn't have to pay. In any case, people die waiting for service with single-payer healthcare as well. Before you try to reform the system, try to understand how the system actually works rather than just repeating talking points.
- forgetfreeman 4y ago
  Your anecdote does not disprove the general case. If you walk into a hospital dead broke with no insurance with a chronic but not immediately life-threatening condition you're not getting the same level of care an individual would if they had the ability to pay for ongoing treatment. I've got a couple ER nurses I can rope into the conversation that can confirm that if you'd care to try to continue arguing the point. As far as healthcare reform goes there's nothing particularly complicated about having a multi-billion dollar industry sieve funds that could be better spent on actual healthcare providers. There is also the minor issue of America's medical bankruptcy rates compared against literally every other industrialized nation on the planet, and the small matter of us having both the most expensive (by a wide margin) and one of the least effective healthcare systems of any 1st world country. Again, what the fuck are you stanning over there?