Quote: (06-28-2017 08:22 PM)nomadbrah Wrote:
Quote: (06-28-2017 08:19 PM)Dan Woolf Wrote:
Quote: (06-28-2017 05:50 PM)nomadbrah Wrote:
No free choice of health care for example. I have no time for a 3 month waiting period for an MR scan of my knee, when I can take the train to Budapest and have it next week for less than $150.
What the fuck. So one can't just go to some private clinic when it comes to healthcare? That sounds very backwards.
It's normal for Northern Europe. That's why I was dissapointed. Most do not talk about this.
I tell you something about the Single Payer System - all of European countries have similar systems - actually all Western countries have it except for the US.
It provides a cost-effective alternative for everyone - depending of course on wealth of the nation, budget of healthcare system etc.
EE countries have a low budget, but what they also have is a cheap private health care business. You can get basic private insurance for as low as 30$/month, which entitles you to a few private visits. Western countries depending on the country have a better public option and a luxury private option - Switzerland has the most private system, but it is still infused with the public offer as well.
If it is an accident or a life-threatening condition, then even the public option offer you the MR scan at once, if it is something else, then the waiting period from country to country may be months. But you can also walk down the street to a private clinic and have it done today for 100$ (or 2000$ if it is Switzerland, though your insurance will reimburse you).
And that is how it works - 15-20% of the top have excellent private care, while the other 80-85% get basic care that they can afford. Due to the fact that there is a single payer system, then the private providers have to lower prices.
If you had an Obamacare subsidized private system or a full-on private system without much of a real competition (Medicare and Medicaid are also subsidized private ones and not a competitive system) then I can guarantee you that the private ones in Europe would jack up their prices tremendously.