Socialized Medicine sure is scary.....

[HM2VikingRN]

ezra klein has a very interesting discussion about the outcomes of the french health insurance system versus the us system.

yes, but are we better? right, you say, that's all very not interesting. but how do we stack up with france? better? worse?

yeah, the second one. france's health care system bodyslams us on most every metric. beyond the beds per 1,000 stat mentioned above, france has more doctors per 1,000 people (3.3 vs. 2.4), spends way less, has 3.2 more physician visits per capita (6 in france vs. 2.8 in america, which probably accounts for the better preventive care in france), has a much higher hospital admission rate, and beats us handily on the most important measure: potential years of life lost. american women lose 3,836 years per 100,000, while american men give up 6,648 in the same sample size (yes, we get screwed). in france, the comparable numbers are 2,588 years for the women and 5,610 for the men. still not great, but quite a bit better.

so france spends less, gets more, and does so through a public-private hybrid that's heavily, heavily public. socialized medicine sure is scary.

[bjs2710]

Trouble is, Timothy, the "greedy corporation" you put your trust in, couldn't care less about your needs... All they care about is your money. As soon as you become a serious liability/expense, they'll cut you loose...

[Iam46yearsold]

The French can have their system.

I prefer mine.

Communism/Socialism doesn't work, and I don't want to either work for, or be treated by, a 'healthcare collective'. You'll pardon me if I don't have that much faith in the Federal Gov't.

Frankly, I rather place my faith in some greedy corporation that at least has a vested interest in meeting my needs.

~faith,

Timothy.

Communism, socialism, wow scary thoughts of Tail Gunner Joe McCarthy here again. wow.

we also see how well greedy corporations have controlled our economy also.

[Iam46yearsold]

I haven't earned less that 100k (as a non-management, bedside RN) in the last 4 yrs. . . I prefer our system better.

I take it back, I fell JUST (less than 1k) short this past year, but I took the month of December off to be with my newborn.

Of course, since the 'French System' pays docs less than 60k/yr, I guess MY 100k is out the window.

~faith,

Timothy.

And how well do they live on that kind of money there.

[Katie82, RN]

I just want an affordable health insurance policy. I would be happy with a catastrophic policy. I really don't want socialized medicine. I want affordable and accessible medicine. I keep asking myself, "Why do my pets get better healthcare than I?". They aren't insured. There healthcare is affordable.

Fuzzy

Have you taken your dog or cat to the vet lately? I drop 2 - 3 hundred every time I take one of my pets through the door.

[hypocaffeinemia, BSN, RN]

I lived in Italy for 2 years. My first husband was Italian, so as a citizen through marriage, I had access to the Healthcare System. I was young and healthy, I'm sure that made a difference, but I did have a baby there, so I had some exposure to the system. I can't complain. I had a family doctor who referred me to an OB. He took good care of me - I delivered in a private Clinica, and the only money we paid was the optional charge for a private room so my husband could stay with me - he couldn't boil water and the hospital fed him during my one-week stay - very common in Italy. I can't say what it would be like if I were elderly or had a chronic disease.... One thing I did notice, however, is that the docs try to jack up their bill by performing more expensive procedures. My OB immediatly suggested a C-section because it pays more. I had been warned by friends and was ready for it. Stood my ground and still had a good outcome.

This isn't foreign to our system, either. Our C/S rate is multiple times higher than what evidence-based guidelines say it should be.

[hypocaffeinemia, BSN, RN]

As to which system is best, no system is without its flaws. However, before you look upon solutions, you need to decide what the question is.

Specifically, is healthcare-- including non-emergent, preventive, routine, chronic and palliative heath care-- a right or a privilege? This isn't so much a legal question so much as it is an ethical question. I do think this is a binary decision one must make. Only then can an appropriate solution be researched that addresses it.

[Koyaanisqatsi-RN]

As to which system is best, no system is without its flaws. However, before you look upon solutions, you need to decide what the question is.

Specifically, is healthcare-- including non-emergent, preventive, routine, chronic and palliative heath care-- a right or a privilege? This isn't so much a legal question so much as it is an ethical question. I do think this is a binary decision one must make. Only then can an appropriate solution be researched that addresses it.

It is absolutely 100% a right. Just the same as police and fire protection is a right. I'd imagine most people would be aghast if you suggested to privatize our police and fire. Yet, for some reason, privatizing our healthcare is ok? It's a ridiculous notion.

[hypocaffeinemia, BSN, RN]

It is absolutely 100% a right. Just the same as police and fire protection is a right. I'd imagine most people would be aghast if you suggested to privatize our police and fire. Yet, for some reason, privatizing our healthcare is ok? It's a ridiculous notion.

Indeed, the same people who state that we shouldn't socialize healthcare likely support socialized fire/ems/police and the largest chunk of our government: socialized military.