Who will read the Health Care Bill ??

[cobra de capell]

However, if you dont have the resources to fund the care, then this care is denied. (As a foreigner, if i got this wrong, please correct me)

Actually, at this point care is not normally denied. Most Americans that work have private health insurance; the poor that don't work can sign up for Medicaid. Medicare is offered to all seniors at 65 at a relatively low cost. Costs that are not covered by Medicare can be supplemented by a private policy that is also reasonable or both Medicare and supplementary coverage is offered by private insurance - cost is a little higher.

In the real world, medical coverage in the US is great, it just needs tweaking - it's getting expensive due to innovations, law suits and fraud in the case of the government run coverage. I'd say around 100 to 200 tweaks would do the trick - not a complete take over by the federal government.

I recently retired, now on Medicare and supplement insurance - coverage is good and if something drastic happens - coverage is available within that setup with few dollars out of pocket. So, no longer earning is not a problem except for those that cannot even afford Medicare and especially a supplemental policy would have a problem, but most of those people are on Medicaid anyway or can apply for Medicaid coverage at 65.

Another point - the relatively few that went to Spain, etc were those that wanted really cheap treatment, often optional procedures, by low-paid staff.

Here's the deal - the US can readily add those that do not have medical insurance to Medicare or Medicaid, done deal. But, no - the feds want to screw around with the entire system and make everyone pay more to provide coverage for everyone.

One additional important point - in America, no one is rejected that needs medical attention - they simply go to the hospital emergency room or to a clinic. The problem in this areas centers of illegal immigrants, especially from Mexico and within that thousands of Mexican mothers that want their baby to be an American citizen by having the baby in America. This must stop.

Aside from all that - the bottomline is that you live in more or less a Socialist country - we don't. We don't tell people how to live, how to eat, how to exercise, to stop having gay sex, not to take drugs or drink too much alcohol (well, we tell them but many don't listen), so why should we take on the responsibility for their health during their entire life time? People are free to make their own decisions and pay a price if they make bad ones.

In other words the cradle to grave ‘coverage’ by the federal government is simply BS in a capitalist country.

[4RE KLR]

Originally Posted by cobra de capell

[i]

... Most Americans that work have private health insurance; ....

Not even close...
According to national statistics.

There are over 30 million people, currently with no health care at all.

[KevinW]

i enjoyed reading your reply, which was interesting and informative, and I'm happy to stand corrected where in error. However, we hear on this state of the pond, rightly or wrongly, stories of hardworking US citizens with insurance cover that then fails to cover them for chronic long term illness, requiring them to sell up to fund end-of-life care. It is the follow-up long term care needed for those chronically ill which represents the greatest cost burden of any healthcare system. Our system isnt perfect, i dont pretend it is.

Then you lost it in the last paragraph, which is, frankly, just insulting.

Have you ever been to England or Scotland (scotland has different healthcare provision to England and Wales) before and seen our system?

I think perhaps you have an issue with the word socialism.
I am not a socialist, btw, and nor is my country, regardless of who occupies No.10 (Brown/Blair/Cameron). That went in the 70s with Jim Callaghan.

[cobra de capell]

Originally Posted by KevinW

i enjoyed reading your reply, which was interesting and informative, and I'm happy to stand corrected where in error. Then you lost it in the last paragraph, which is just insulting.

Have you ever been to England or Scotland (scotland has different healthcare provision to England and Wales) before and seen our system?

I think perhaps you have an issue with the word socialism.
I am not a socialist, btw, and nor is my country, regardless of who occupies No.10.

It's doubtful that a Socialist would own a Cobra.....

Anyway, I've read sufficient material on the web to know that there are "socialist' issues with your health coverage system - for example....

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/...t_cancer_drug/

Women Denied Key Breast Cancer Drug
Posted on: Tuesday, 25 January 2005, 18:00 CST

WOMEN with breast cancer still face a postcode lottery over the prescribing of drugs, a damning new report revealed today.

London has some of the best and worst areas for receiving a drug called Herceptin - which can double the survival time for some women with advanced breast cancer.

Southwest London has the best record in the country for giving the drug to women, but north-east London is still among the worst, more than a year after the medicine's watchdog said everyone who is eligible should get it.

It means a woman diagnosed with breast cancer in Wimbledon is almost certain to get the drug, while another in Edmonton, just over 20 miles away, has a less than one in four chance of doing so.

The figures emerged in a report from the influential Public Accounts Committee which shows Britain lags behind the rest of Europe in survival rates.
_______

The figures emerged in a report from the influential Public Accounts Committee which shows Britain lags behind the rest of Europe in survival rates.

Therefore, no thanks to the English system. Denying women in Edmonton seems strange, at best. Picking who will live or not seems like not a good thing to place in the hands of government. I pray that America doesn't not take that route.

[cobra de capell]

Originally Posted by 4RE KLR

Not even close...
According to national statistics.

There are over 30 million people, currently with no health care at all.

I stated that "Most Americans that work have private health insurance"

From CNN.....

The percentages of people covered by private health insurance and by employment-based health insurance both decreased slightly in 2007, the Census numbers showed, although the number of those covered by employment-based insurance, 177.4 million, was not statistically different from 2006.

That's 177.4 million in 2007 - may have gone down since that time, but a huge number. Therefore, "Most Americans that work have private health insurance".

I didn't reference those not covered but I doubt that your number is correct - I also doubt that you've excluded illegals. Besides, no one really knows what that number is, except apparently you.

Next time you question a post of mine, furnish a link that supports your numbers or get lost.