Controversial Michael Moore Flick 'Sicko' Will Compare U.S. Health Care with Cuba's

[HM2VikingRN]

Health care advances in Cuba

According to the Associated Press as cited in the Post article, "Cuba has made recent advancements in biotechnology and exports its treatments to 40 countries around the world, raking in an estimated $100 million a year. ... In 2004, the U.S. government granted an exception to its economic embargo against Cuba and allowed a California drug company to test three cancer vaccines developed in Havana."

http://alternet.org/envirohealth/50911/?page=1

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2007/08/47-million-reas.html#more

Sad commentary about the state of affairs in the US. Of course in Canada the number of uninsured is essentially zero.

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

[spydercadet]

Just want to make sure I'm clear on all of this; Everyone who likes nationalized health care all have HMO insurance and reject any type of traditional or PPO style insurance, right? It seems to me that HMO's deliver care in very much the same manner as nationalized care, and yes there are many who just love HMO. And those who have crazy idea's like personal choices and decisions are just insane. After-all, who do they think they are!!!

[pickledpepperRN]

My husband has single payer health insurance, Medicare. He CHOOSES his providers.

He can choose his primary physician and refer himself to a specialist.

Recenly he went to an opthomologist with no need to wait for authorization. If he were in an HMO he could have been made to wait. (Of course if you are able and willing to pay you can see whoever you want even if you do have an HMO.)

Many people are not able to purchase health insurance because of a pre existing condition. In California if their employer provides group insurance they cannot be refused but they cannot CHOOSE. they have to get a job and take what their employer offers. It may be an HMO.

Blue Cross undergoes examination

The health plan comes under fire during a state regulatory hearing. The company says members are well served….

… When an Indiana company bought Blue Cross of California in November 2003, it promised to maintain and improve the services and benefits of the state's largest health insurer….

…Nearly three years later, state regulators say they have been besieged by complaints that patients are paying more and doctors are about to be paid less. Regulators held an unusual public hearing Tuesday in downtown Los Angeles to find out why….

…"Something must be done now by the department," said Janet Stephens, a disabled nurse with a bladder condition who has watched her benefits decline while her Blue Cross premium has steadily risen in recent years to $569 a month…

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-bluecross8aug08,1,3202360,full.story?coll=la-headlines-business

About the hearing: http://www.hmohelp.ca.gov/library/reports/news/pmbccpres.pdf

Paying your premium is not enough to get the care you already paid for: http://www.hmohelp.ca.gov/library/reports/news/prbccpcusurvey.pdf

[teeituptom, BSN, RN]

Spacenurse sounds like its time for UHC

[BBFRN, BSN, PhD]

Just want to make sure I'm clear on all of this; Everyone who likes nationalized health care all have HMO insurance and reject any type of traditional or PPO style insurance, right? It seems to me that HMO's deliver care in very much the same manner as nationalized care, and yes there are many who just love HMO. And those who have crazy idea's like personal choices and decisions are just insane. After-all, who do they think they are!!!

Huh?

I have a PPO, and it sucks. The HMO offered by my employer is much better, but it's way too expensive. I wish I could afford it. I would definitely have gotten the HMO if I had chronic medical issues- then, I might get my money's worth.

[spydercadet]

i was not talking about medicare, and that will not be the plan we will get if the usa adopts a nationalized health care system. yes, you can choose from a list of physicians within a hmo plan. i am just wondering if all of those who seem so determined to get nationalized health care here in the us have always chosen to adopt a hmo option when given the choice. they proclaim the wonders of a national plan, so i would like to know if they proclaim those same wonders of the hmo's. they are essentially the same. using anecdotal evidence of people in canada and europe, who just love their health care systems, does not make it valid. look at ozzy osborne’s wife, she had breast cancer, and her treatment occurred in england. when she was done with her care, what did she feel had to do? she donated one million dollars and specified that it be used to improve the conditions at the hospital. you know, that perfect, wonderful, nationalized system, which guarantees equal care for all. however, equal insures sameness not greatness. because of what she saw and what she had undergone she felt she could give back. however, why did she choose to donate that much money, to that aspect of a healthcare system, which according to many on this thread, is equivalent to heaven here on earth? could it have been the outdated equipment, peeling paint in most, if not all the patient rooms, hospital beds frequently not working? the list can go on. are there people who love nationalized healthcare in their countries, of course? does that mean that nationalized healthcare is great? no.

as for people with disabilities here in america, we do have safety nets and you need to connect with those that can help you access them. the disabled can collect ssdi and then get on medicare. add medicaid as your secondary and you will have the best insurance in america. it will take awhile to become eligible for medicare, but for the disabled they are eligible. i have worked in many hospitals and in many units and i have never heard anyone who was critically to get out. of course, there are hospitals that do that, but there are also hospitals that do not. we are a great country because of who we are and what we do. we have an innate and overwhelming desire to reach out and help anyone and everyone in need. it is in our actual implementation of the caring for those less fortunate, both here and around the world, which makes american’s truly different. therefore, i really do not understand why more government involvement and regulation would improve anyone’s situation. the less personal we become as a nation, the more respect around the world we lose.

tocqueville:

i sought for the greatness and genius of america in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers, and it was not there…in her fertile fields and boundless forests, and it was not there…

in her rich mines and her vast world commerce, and it was not there…in her democratic congress and her matchless constitution, and it was not there.

not until i went into the churches of america and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did i understand the secret of her genius and power.

america is great because america is good; and if america ever ceases to be good, america will cease to be great.

has anyone ever wondered why the last catholic pope, whether you are catholic or not, thought socialism, in any form was evil and at its roots sinful. he rebuffed castro, and spoke out against societies who thought redistribution of wealth and property lead to worse aspects of us as humans. he spoke to each of us, he encouraged everyone to act to help one another, and he said it was our obligation to care for the least of our "brother's" and in that, we all become a stronger nation and learn what compassion truly is. however, he believed that if we allowed government to take over the role caring for individuals, nothing less than the ruination of the human spirit would develop.

[pickledpepperRN]

I am glad you agree with me that WE must care for our brothers and sisters. I think America is great enough to do much better than we are now regarding healthcare.

No it will never be perfect. I am glad Sharon Osborne recovered and wants to do her part to improve healthcare.

Medicare is the United States single payer healthcare for all Americans age 65 and above and for those who have undergone the process of being officially permanently disabled. We pay for government employees and retirees from the lowest paid to the Presidents. We pay for our military. I want our veterans to have the choice of provider too. With Medicare for all they will.

Then WE will always have to work to improve OUR care.

WE already cover those with the most expensive needs. Why not expand and improve Medicare for all of US?

I am Catholic.

I think it is a dictatorship such as Cuba has that the Pope disapproved of. Not all the countries that have healthcare, education, firefighting, police, roads, parks, and libraries for the people.

It is a matter of democracy. When the citizens not the corporations or those entitled by birth run the government WE will insist that healthcare is a right.

I also think the government of each country should ensure an adequate amount of safe water for the people to drink.

H. R. 676, “The United States National Health Insurance Act,”

Or “Expanded & Improved Medicare For All”

http://www.house.gov/conyers/news_hr676.htm

Fact sheet: http://www.house.gov/conyers/news_HR_676_Summary.pdf

"Of all the forms of inequality,

injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane."Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

[teeituptom, BSN, RN]

How did the Pope get into this

[BBFRN, BSN, PhD]

And why didn't Sharon Osborne get treated in America, where she resides? Why did she choose to go to GB in the first place?

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

Of course the number of uninsureds continues to climb: See: http://www.cbpp.org/images/8-27-07pov-f1sm.jpg

[HM2VikingRN, RN]

This letter to the editor was in our local paper today - I thought it would be worth sharing.

Eye-opening ER

This is in reference to your editorial "Fading Fast: Neglect of U.S. Health Care Takes Its Toll" (Aug. 20). On a trip to England in June, my wife developed a serious infection. We went to an emergency room in London that was packed. We almost went home because we thought we would be there for hours. Forty-five minutes later my wife, Judy, was seen by two physicians who consulted two other physicians. An hour and a half into our ER stay, Judy walked out of the examination room with a diagnosis and a prescription for medication. We were met with incredulous chuckles when we asked where we should pay for her treatment. "No one pays for emergency treatment in the U.K.," we were told by a smiling young nurse.

We were then directed to walk down a hall to get Judy's meds. Ten minutes later she received them. This time when she inquired as to the price of the meds she was told that no one over 60 pays for medication in the United Kingdom.

We were overjoyed by this wonderful treatment: Two hours after we arrived, my wife had received excellent medical care and medication all for no charge. We didn't have to worry about pre-approval, submitting claims or arguing with our providers about coverage.

We were not only embarrassed that our country doesn't provide such treatment, but angry at its failure to do so.

CHARLES W. BRICE

Edgewood

https://allnurses.com/forums/f18/emergency-care-uk-246759.html#post2381739

All I can say is "What waiting time?"