ANSWERS: 20
  • No i have to many health problemsm and an old age pensioner
  • Although not perfect, some health care is better than nothing. I would stick to Canadian.
  • Never! I take comfort in knowing that when things get rough, or when changing jobs (in between benefits) that I can still receive basic healthcare and not have to worry about the cost. I have children as well, and It's good to know that if something ever happens (an emergency) I won't have to shell out any extra..
  • I don't know in detail how the American health care system works but my understanding is that health care has to be paid for either by insurance cover or directly prior to treatment being given. If that's correct I wouldn't want to give up the NHS in exchange for that system, mainly because it seems to be such a grotesquely unfair system that differentiates between who gets treatment and who doesn't based solely on ability to pay. However I'm aware that many Americans would take the opposite view and many of our views are based upon our own experience.
  • No way. I feel safe in the knowledge that no matter what else happens I will always be taken care of at the hospital.
  • well, Im an american and i would love to give up our system for universal healthcare. The system we have in america is horrifying to say the least...
  • I am American and I have good insurance. However, I lived in France and would trade the American system for the system in France any time. Everyone gets healthcare there, and if you want to supplement the government system with privite insurance you can. I thought it was a great system.
  • I live in Britain and am really thankful for free health care. I have a long term medical problem and i can't work because of it, so i receive disability benefits. That entitles me to free prescriptions too. I would have to pay hundreds of pounds a year if i had to pay for my own prescriptions.
  • I'm British and am very grateful for our health care system, people moan about it but if they had to pay for their own insurance believe me they would soon shut up!!! I like the fact that no-one gets turned away and everyone is treated, how cold can one be to turn around and say..'sorry cant treat you, no insurance..bye!' i might moan about my little country but thats one thing i am appreciative of.
  • I'm Canadian, but I lived and worked in the US for 6 years. I had HMO coverage, but often couldn't get the health care I needed due to the co-pays and chargebacks I received. The standard of care I got in the US was no better than what I get here for free. The amount I pay in taxes as a Canadian citizen for health care is no worse than what I was paying for private coverage in the US, straight out of my own pocket. The main difference is that the Canadian system has never denied me treatment I needed, and certainly never sent me a letter in the mail asking to be repaid after the fact. I love Canadian universal health care, and having experienced life without it, I can't imagine living without it ever again.
  • The NHS is the jewel in Britains crown, all those who denegrate it, do not realise how dedicated the staff are and it is free to all, no matter how rich or poor. I for one would never exchange it for the US system... pay up or get second tier treatment... if any.
  • Absolutely not, No canadian that i know of has had to declare bancruptcy because of medical costs. The system needs repair,However In recent years in a desperate attempt to 'fix' our sick system in Canada the Government of the day actually hired an American consulting firm (Connie Curran) and it has been downhill since then.
  • A NURSES' ROAST Then there's the story of American Practices Management (APM) and the intrepid Manitoba Nurses Union of Canada. APM likes to say they "only do healthcare consulting" to legitimize themselves as the preeminent consultants in the field. They pocket handsome fees on care models that reduce the skill level of caregivers, cut the workforce, and promote expensive technological products made by other companies. For example, APM's Connie Curran sits on the board of the Pyxis Corporation. Pyxis makes ATM-style medication dispensing machines placed on hospital wards to monitor inventory and the times medications are given. It's no wonder that Pyxis machines often end up in hospitals where APM consults. And they cost upwards of $40,000 each. APM arrived in Manitoba Province in 1994 to "advise" the Canadian provincial government on hospital workforce reengineering. (This kind of practice is commonplace ever since NAFTA opened the door.) APM advised Manitoba to deeply cut the number of licensed practical nurses and also the number of registered nurses employed in the province's hospital system, and to replace them with unlicensed nursing assistants with less training and lower pay. For this advice they charged the province $3.9 million. 'AMERICAN BOUNTY HUNTER' But Manitoban nurses knew what was up. The Manitoba Nurses Union invited APM consultant Connie Curran to their annual meeting, where she showed her "total quality management" slides, complete with Canadian flag logos in the corners. After the presentation, she was roasted by the nurses. One nurse called her an "American bounty hunter" after nurses' jobs. The local media filmed the festivities. Everyone in the Province of Manitoba learned about Connie Curran and her American-style plans for their hospital system. Soon after, the union began running TV spots warning of the effects of the planned cutbacks. The union made healthcare cuts the central issue in the next provincial election, and several incumbent politicians were turned out of office as a result of their healthcare stance. The Manitoba nurses and their allies were able to stop many cuts and to negotiate funding for retraining. However, some nurses did lose their job
  • I wish that we (in the U.S) would adopt the universal healthcare..its clearly a better program!
  • Never! The only way I'd ever live in the states is if I had a job that had excellent health benefits included. Growing up whenever I went to the states, my mom would always say "Don't get injured! It will cost me a fortune if you have to go to the hospital in the US!" While I was away at camp, I was so afraid of getting hurt for fear of putting my mom is debt! Not the type of lifestyle I would want. She later bought US medical insurance for my frequent trips to the US. My cousins (who live in the states) got into a huge car accident, their medical bill was $250,000!!! Their medical plan did not cover all of it, so they still had to fork out thousands of dollars for something that was not even their fault (they weren't even driving). And then seeing an entire family (kids, grandparents, cousins, parents) who don't have a lot to begin with give up all their christmas money one Christmas to one of their family members (just barely 18) to pay $10,000 for a small tumor removal -including his 10 year old sister who sold her cow for hundreds of dollar for her brother - it just breaks my heart to have to see that happen. In canada all your doctor's appointments, shots, surgeries, cancer treatments are fully covered or HEAVILY subsidized...including prescription drugs. I never have to worry about paying large monthly payments for medical insurance with little coverage, or going into debt and having to sell off my home...it's a very comforting feeling to know if something happens, I know I'm covered.
  • No. Not that I have anything against the free market but I don't like profit in healthcare, sorry. That is not to say it is perfect, far from it. It is very sad to say but I would not be surprised to see the NHS ended completely within the next 50 years. Also I feel the compulsion to add the NHS was founded under a Labour Government (OK, more or less). How on earth did they turn into the spineless freaks we have in power today? Sorry getting political there... :)
  • I'm Australian and we have Medicare and I would never give it up ...everyone here is entitled to medical help ...everyone!, not just the rich like in America... from what I have seen and read its a total joke ... soooo many people in the U.S. being not able to get help all because of the mighty dollar or lack of it , I find it rather sick that you can have doctors that are multi millionares and have earned this from other peoples suffering and who will not see let alone treat people who can not aford their $1000 per hour fee's ... hypocratic oath ...bullshit.. bank balance is more important to them
  • Absolutely not, I could not imagine having to fork over that kind of money, especially for costly treaments such radiology, and MRI's
  • No, I'm happy with the British system.
  • I live in Canada, and No Never,ever. Because our system works and works well, despite the propoganda spread in the US. I have never been turned down for any kind of medical treatment. There has been a bit of a wait for one thing I had done, a surgery to controll my heartburn, but WAAAAA who cares. And myself being self employed made 80 000 last year and I payed $15 000 in income tax, probably compareable to what the avrage amearican has to pay for a private plan for a faimly of 5 like mine. Then you have there co pays, deductables and the b.s, It makes me sick that anybody down there is fighting against Obama, hes actually trying to do some good in that ass backward country

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