Comment by kstenerud
2 days ago
Oh bloody hell.
It astounds me how so many people can have such strong opinions about systems they have so little experience with.
I've lived long term in 4 countries (Canada, USA, Japan, Germany) and have dealt extensively with the medical systems in all of them (plus some experiences in Portugal and France).
Every system has its warts, and this is the first thing that naysayers will latch onto, of course. People love to use tu-quoque as a defense mechanism. "See? They're just as bad as we are because you have to wait sometimes, and look at this extreme case right here! It's probably even WORSE than us!"
The fact is, none of the systems are really that bad (with the EXCEPTION of the American system). There's a reason why travel insurance companies have two tiers: All of the world EXCEPT America, and all of the world INCLUDING America.
Have I had to wait for a procedure in Canada? Sure, but they do a pretty decent job of triaging, so yeah outside of the HORROR STORIES (of which you can find anywhere if you dig enough), it's pretty damn good. In Japan I paid a percentage of costs (which are pretty damn reasonable). In France I actually didn't have insurance, so I had to pay FULL price when I came down with pneumonia: 50 euros for the doctor and the antibiotics. In Portugal, I caught COVID, and got treatment within 2 hours of arriving at the hospital in Lisbon.
If you haven't actually been in the medical system of another country, you don't know what you're talking about.
> If you haven't actually been in the medical system of another country, you don't know what you're talking about.
Being in the medical system doesn’t give you a leg to stand on either.
I grew up with insurance and have insurance now in the US. I’ve never had problems getting medical care and the worst year was ~$1000 out of pocket.
The conclusion from that isn’t that it’s a good system for everyone and nobody who complains knows what they are talking about. It’s that anecdotes of good or bad treatment are meaningless.
>Being in the medical system doesn’t give you a leg to stand on either.
If anything it gives one an incentive to see the problem in a way that doesn't threaten their paycheck.
Every nurse will say they're over worked. Every paper pusher will say their job is essential. The guy selling overpriced gloves to the hospital, the landscaper making the grounds look like a country club, they all have justifications as do the people paying them. And they're all on the take to some degree. The whole system is one of top to bottom plausibly deniable unneeded expenditure. Nobody not at the very top is getting rich off it just because so many are in on it. But the fact that they're not getting rich doesn't mean it's not a waste of everyone's money.