Panis et Circenses

[dotinthesky]

[Poll #1445374]

Feel free to expand in the comments section.

Edit: If you are British, please consider "Health Care" as including the National Health Service (NHS). Basically, what I meant by it was an umbrella definition for some kind of system (whether private or not) that offers you health care.

Comments

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

I have "top up" healthcare cover through the Benenden Healthcare Society (previously the Civil Service Sanatorium Society). Basically it can get me in to see NHS consultants quicker, will pay for private consultants if the the NHS is taking the piss, and they will either get you private operations or they have their own hospital that does stuff like orthopaedic surgery if your waiting list is too long. I've never had to use it, touch wood.

[missfairchild.livejournal.com]

Given that the Swiss health care system has saved my life twice this year, I'm pretty bloody happy with it.

[whitman22.livejournal.com]

I have fairly top-of-the-line health insurance through my employer, a huge American corporation, and a great local medical practice where I'm very comfortable. However I spent quite a few years between grad school and full employment with no insurance at all, and am merely lucky that I had no major illnesses during that time. For example, the appendectomy that was fully covered by my insurance a couple of years ago would have put me close to $18,000 in debt, had I even gone to the ER at all before it ruptured. I would prefer a single-payer system in the US with private medical practitioners, but the entrenched interests are too strong for that to happen at the moment. I hope that at least we can extend coverage to the uninsured and unemployed/underemployed.

[vivnsect.livejournal.com]

I need to elaborate. I haven't had health insurance in 4 years. The last time I had it I had it for 1 year from the company I was working for and despite having great insurance I was turned down for a procedure my doctor said I needed because the insurance company at the time claimed I didn't need it (yes, utterly ridiculous).

I lost the insurance after I left that job and became a full time student. I was denied Medicaid for years (Medicaid is the current government health 'insurance' here) because my previous taxes made me look like I made too much money to qualify (which was a joke, I was barely scraping by).

I *just* now re-applied for Medicaid and got it (literally this week). It goes into effect on September 1st. I am so overwhelmed with problems that I haven't had treated properly that I don't even know where to begin (for reference I haven't had dental insurance for over 10 years as well!).

How did I deal with myself for the last 4 years? The way so many Americans do. If I had a pressing medical matter I would go to the nearest public run hospital, sign papers and be treated as I was an emergency because it was the only way I could be seen without paying money up front. I had/have medical bills from those visits that total over 3 thousand dollars (thankfully Medicaid will cover some of those). I have a condition where I take meds daily and had to beg my old doctor via e-mails to write scripts for me without seeing me (so my levels haven't been tested properly in over a year either because a visit to him to get my blood tested would have cost me over 100$, something I couldn't afford).

I am appalled that there are people in the U.S. who think our current healthcare system is great. I would love for them to live a year in my shoes or anyone's shoes I have seen when I wait in the same waiting room as them in a hospital for hours and hours for care we should be getting from a regular doctor.

[olamina.livejournal.com]

I am American but I don't live in America so I answered the "non-americans"