Response to Viviana (part 2) You did not think you would get off so easily? I have a lot of mog to share! :=))
VMC: I don't know anyone who is against providing free health CARE to those who can't afford it, it's the FORCED INSURANCE that is the problem. GL: This statement is most confusing. Who and how will this "free healthcare" be paid for? Providing care is not caring for an individual when they are sick. There is a lot achieved in Preventive and Maintenance care. And there has to be a system of someone supervising these aspects of care. It is the absence of Preventive and Maintenance care that results in expensive care at a more advanced stage of the disease. This is the one of the main problems with the current healthcare system, specially in a society which has less and less social support at home to ensure the individual is prompt in their medical appointments and following-up the doctor's advice. VMC: I think you mean that providing care is not MERELY caring for an individual when they (sic) are sick. The rest of this para has nothing to do with healthcare or its accessibility and everything to do with the behavior of individual patients. How is forcing someone to buy health insurance going to remedy that? It's a problem which health insurance cannot solve, it's a problem of individual responsibility. GL responds: Not having insurance is often the crux of the healthcare conundrum. These patients do not go to doctors for preventive and maintenance care, because of out-of-pocket costs. For non-emergency care, they go to the hospital's emergency room. This is expensive. Then when in doubt, these ER patients are admitted. Upon discharge there is no one to supervise, follow-up and provide these patients any continuity of care. Having all into the system permits the system to be efficient. There is no cost-shifting of the financial burden, and no finger-pointing by various stake-holders in the healthcare system. IMO there needs to be Rewards and Disincentives to all stake-holders. Currently USA spends 17.3% of its GDP on healthcare (which is 30% more that its next western economic competitor) and on the international scale ranks just above Cuba. You may or may not be delighted to know that I am not a strong proponent of 'Single Payer'. Regards ani mog, GL
