Originally Posted by fortheether
I keep hearing about death panels - is it true?
Totally untrue, never heard of it, or any suspicious deaths. Media would be all over it if there was a shred of truth in it. You can safely put that down as propaganda.
How long does it take to get a blood test?
I could have one this afternoon at my local clinic if I wanted to. I'd have to get an emergency appointment though, but it's usually no problem. It's free. Results take a few days depending on what they are checking for.
Do those that have preexisting conditions not get other problems cured. Who decides?
That's the beauty of this. They can't deny you any treatments or checks, ever. If you are ill or have a condition, you get treated. End of story. If they don't continue to treat you as best they can until you die, then they break the law. It's unheard of for somebody to be denied a treatment that they need. You don't have to explain or worry about anything.
I heard the British entity that manages health care is the 3rd biggest company in the world. Is this true? If so, why?
No idea. They try to keep the costs down, but obviously they need to hire a lot of people. The NHS runs almost all hospitals in the entire country. Some of it is outsourced to private staffing companies though. The NHS then contracts the private company that supply cleaners, night-nurses etc on a temporary basis, when they are short of people. But most of the doctors, nurses and other staff are hired directly by the NHS
What is good about socialized medicine?
All medicines cost USD 10. (£6.50) Doesn't matter what the real price is. For children and people who don't work it is completely free. In Sweden you pay for it yourself (at subsidized price) until you have spent USD 100. After that, all medicines are free for the rest of the year. Because Northern European average salaries are a bit higher than US average salaries, the prices for medicines are largely symbolic - unemployed people need to prove that they are unemployed to get the medicine for free.
RARELY there are stories in the press about people who want one particular brand of medicine but their doctor prescribes something else.. Usually this can be sorted out with the doctor, but occassionally the doctor insists on the preferred medicine and won't prescribe the one that the patient prefers. There have been accusations made that this is to save money. It's extremely rare though. Certainly never happened to me or anybody I know.
Why would I want my health care from the government? They can't even pave the roads.
Well then, get rid of that government... :) 500 million Europeans don't see this as a problem, despite the fact that we have some bumpy roads too. Nobody in Europe is going to preach about this, or to you or try to get you to go our way. It's your country and it's up to you have you want to live. When Europeans complain about the US it's always about things that the US does OUTSIDE it's borders. This is your internal business....
I honestly want to know what is good but also what is bad about socialized medicine. The liberal media here only seems to say good thinks about it. Why do they not tell the whole truth? Please tell me what they are hiding.
They are not hiding anything. Up until now Americans have been tricked into thinking this is bad, when in fact, it isn't. Come and check for yourself. Break your arm in France or get appendicitis in the UK. Despite being American you'll probably be treated completely for free and I doubt that you'll find anything to complain about.
Also bear in mind that the British system is not quite as good as Scandinavia, France and the Benelux countries. There, you'd always get your own room and the food is better at the hospital. Norway has the best healthcare in Europe right now. That said, British healthcare is excellent, there is no reason to complain at all. I have had surgery here and am perfectly content.
If pressed, all I can think of is that in Britain you have to share a room if you are hospitalised. I don't like that. But it's not exactly a serious problem.
There is a short waiting time for certain non-urgent treatments. A few weeks or a month maybe. This is an inconvenience.
I actually HAVE a private health insurance (I don't need it though)/ But the NHS is so good that I never used the private insurance. I forgot about mentioning it to the Dr when I needed surgery.
Thank you,
Scott