Comment by eftychis
2 years ago
My personal experience as a European citizen living in the U.S. is drastically different.
I flee the U.S. to have all my medical related tests and work, out of pocket, in the E.U. And it is cheaper and much much better experience. (And I don't get different treatment compared to any members of my family that are insured in Europe for paying out of pocket.)
First of all: I speak with a doctor. Not a nurse, an administrator to size me up, to see if I am in actual need of an appointment, but a doctor. (Yes, this has happened to me in the U.S. I find it unacceptable, especially given that I was apparently in much more dire situation than I even thought, and was lucky to be seen by a doctor, otherwise I would have joined the disabled group of individuals.)
I am not sure why people in the U.S. keep bringing up the UK [Edit: -- not sure if that is what you are implying but most people are in other comments]. Pick any EU country. Sure, you might not have a 5 star doctor's office, but you are going to be treated by a doctor efficiently. And that is what matters. Don't waste money on administrative tasks and fees.
Not a solution for everyone... but I have to ask, since you have the time to go to the EU for routine medical work, why not move to somewhere in the US that has doctors?
Also looking at a primary care wait time is fine, but what is broken in most single player systems is specialists and "non-emergency surgery"... which is often stuff that significantly affects your quality of life.
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/health-ca...
(the colors represent a primary care, but actually hover over each country...)
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I ruptured a ligament in my knee and since it wasn't a traumatic injury, the surgery to repair it was considered a non-emergency and I was sent home from the ER.
My uncle is an orthopedic surgeon in Norway and was shocked to hear I was already scheduled for surgery to repair within a week. He said in Norway that would easily have been a month or two wait, which is alarming to me.
At the end of the day the US system is broken, but I think this illusion that single player is some strictly better concept that the US is just rejecting is also wrong. Care is noticeably worse in many EU countries when you look past the singular measure of "Time to see your primary care"
> why not move to somewhere in the US that has doctors?
Do you have a suggestion where in the US that is? The US has many doctors but essentially all of them are gated behind insurances and especially hospitals.
What are you imagining it should be?
You can see your doctor pretty much freely within the US for nearly any reason. This idea you cannot see your doctor in the US, or that you receive treatment from nurses or administrators is simply not true.
> insurances and especially hospitals
You may be confused, because some doctors operate private practices, while others choose to work for large hospital organizations. Private practices may be more akin to what some people's idea of a doctor should be. Most insurance plans offer a selection of hospitals and doctor networks, allowing you to chose the style and type that works best for you.
In all cases, you can see your doctor if needed, with very little lead time if any.
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I mean I've lived in 4 cities in the last 8 years, and in every single one I could see a primary care provider on a day's notice.
Although actually re-reading your post, it sounds like you're really just trying to take a dig at Nurse Practitioners, most of which hold doctorates.
I guess if you're too good for a DNP, the primary care must in fact seem like an impossible thing, in which case I do wish you good luck on the 8 hour flight for "all my medical tests".
>to have all my medical related tests and work, out of pocket, in the E.U.
Wow. Imagine a world where one entity received all the peoples medical bills instead. Too bad the EU can't achieve that.