American's take on British medical services.

[TravisAW]

So do all doctors agree to be “in network?” Do they all get paid the same amount?

I don't know.

I work in the financial services industry.

We also have a private medical sector, with a major provider being BUPA. That's where you can pay extra or it's a perk with some jobs, to go private and cut waiting lists for certain treatments. Feel free to have a search, I don't have specific examples at hand.
It can also be the case that certain operations and procedures are outsourced by the NHS to the private sector when they are particularly busy or don't have the skills.

 

[ElvieG]

So do all doctors agree to be “in network?” Do they all get paid the same amount?

The way medical training is organised in the UK, newly qualified doctors are required to do a period of intern training in an NHS hospital before they receive their licence. If they intend to practice medicine in the UK, they need to acquire further training in a speciality, which usually involves another six or seven years of working for the NHS. Most doctors up to the level of Registrar are paid according to nationally negotiated pay scales.

 

[TravisAW]

Both questions for google, I'm afraid. I personally pay no extra as I am single. When I had someone on my plan during COVID, there was approximately a $300/month charge, all in. Obviously, what I am paid for my salaried job is affected by the need to provide health insurance to me.

I am childfree, so have no experience with your second query.

OK, Googled them.

Q1 - The average annual cost for an individual health insurance plan is about $8,951, while for a family plan, it is around $25,572.
https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=c033...wYXktZm9yLWhlYWx0aC1pbnN1cmFuY2UuaHRtbA&ntb=1

Q2 - Approximately $18,865
The average cost to have a baby in the USA is approximately $18,865, which includes expenses for pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum care. If you have health insurance, the average out-of-pocket cost is about $2,854, while those without insurance can expect significantly higher bills. Overall, the total cost can vary based on factors such as location and type of delivery.

That is frightening. I'm stunned that in such an advanced nation, you can be so out of pocket for something as natural as having a child.

 

[AnomalyLady]

I abhor the insurance industry's involvement in providing health care. So this just reinforces my feelings, even though I already kind of knew the numbers. Another evil of having the government or an industry pay for health care is that you do not get the true market value of each procedure or good, as I noted above.

With regards to childbirth, if I had chosen to do that, I, of course, wouldn't want to have anybody else forced to pay for any portion of it. But you live in the system in which you're beholdened...

What do you think would be best? Just no health insurance and you go to the doctor, get your meds, and go to the ER as you need to?

 

[JohnEngelman]

Countries with socialized medicine spend less per capita than we do on health care, they have lower infant mortality rates, and higher life expectancy.

 

[AnomalyLady]

Countries with socialized medicine spend less per capita than we do on health care, they have lower infant mortality rates, and higher life expectancy.

Very interesting. Do they have lower BP / mother deaths during / after labor?

 

[Philthy_Phil]

Any system wherein other people are forced through taxation to pay for my health care is a system I can't support, and that includes the U.S.

In Canada I know a man who needed a knee replacement. They said two years for his "free" procedure because it wasn't "life threatening." He was in agony and ended up getting it done at a private clinic in Toronto. He didn't get a tax rebate on that. In the U.S., health insurance would have covered that inside a month.

Doubling down I see.

My previous statement stands.

 

[Philthy_Phil]

Very interesting. Do they have lower BP / mother deaths during / after labor?

Yes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_maternal_mortality_ratio

 

[AlexBailey]

Every American family , except for the wealthiest, can lose everything they have at any moment due to illness or injury.

Health insurance policies are riddled with exceptions, even the best most expensive policies. They all have lifetime and yearly caps on how much they will pay, limits on number of days they will cover for various services.

If you get your health insurance through work and end up injured or too sick to continue going to work, your monthly insurance premium bills don’t end.

My wife works with the homeless population here in California. She has many elderly widow clients whose husbands died of long drawn out illnesses, some who had million $ estates before falling sick.



USA . Don’t get sick. Don’t get unlucky. Don’t count on anything you have worked for all of your life to be there for you when you need it.

 

[AnomalyLady]

Yes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_maternal_mortality_ratio

Crazy sad.

Thanks.

 

[Bn2f]

The U.S. system is abhorrent as well with its bloodsucking insurance companies masking the true price of healthcare with the weird Kabuki theater routine they do with providers. I criticize all systems of health care wherein I have to pay for other people's health care and they have to pay for mine. That includes the health care system of the united states. Half my family is canadian, and although they are very nationalistic they absolutely hate the Canadian system. And it is socialized. Let the market rule.

I’m confused by someone criticizing insurance companies and then saying “Let the market rule.” It’s like you asked the leopards to eat your face.

 

[MajorRewrite]

I believe everybody should pay for their own health care. Then, you would see what the goods and services really cost because they would be negotiated on a much more transparent marketplace. Less of this $5000 x-ray and $100 aspirin nonsense because third-parties are haggling over the cost of your health care. I loathe the idea of mandatory involvement of health insurance companies even more than I do socialized medicine.

Paying out of pocket for all healthcare isn’t a realistic option. One serious illness (cancer etc) or injury (car crash, etc) will bankrupt anyone but the richest in society.

That’s why insurance of all kinds exists! Auto, home and health insurance exist to protect you from bankruptcy due to a catastrophic unfortunate event.

 

[Bn2f]

I wouldn't mind voluntary arrangements with insurance companies in a way similar to flood or fire insurance.

Ultimately, it comes down to whether one thinks health care is a "right" or not. I believe it is not. I do not have the right to make other people pay/provide for my health care.

You seem to say shit out yer ass.
I really don’t think you have a clue about how healthcare or insurance works especially if you’re comparing to flood and fire insurance.

 

[AlexBailey]

I believe everybody should pay for their own health care. Then, you would see what the goods and services really cost because they would be negotiated on a much more transparent marketplace. Less of this $5000 x-ray and $100 aspirin nonsense because third-parties are haggling over the cost of your health care. I loathe the idea of mandatory involvement of health insurance companies even more than I do socialized medicine.

I understand your loathing but I wonder how you suggest society deal with those who can’t afford healthcare expenses.

Theses people include a wide swathe of the population, for a broad spectrum of causes.

Young families and elderly people are particularly vulnerable, as are young adults who may not have their shit together yet.

Do you not believe in any social safety net?

 

[Bn2f]

"Do you not believe in any social safety net?"

This is a much broader question than what has been discussed and I don't think anybody really cares about my answer. (Not that they should.) I think I'll leave it for another day.

You’ve had an open platform all night and now you get shy?

 

[AlexBailey]

"Do you not believe in any social safety net?"

This is a much broader question than what has been discussed and I don't think anybody really cares about my answer. (Not that they should.) I think I'll leave it for another day.

There’s a reason that much of the population appreciates a social safety net. Even Ayn Rand made use of it.

 

[JohnEngelman]

Very interesting. Do they have lower BP / mother deaths during / after labor?

• AI Overview
  
  "BP / mother deaths" refers to the connection between blood pressure (BP) and maternal mortality, with high blood pressure during pregnancy being a leading cause of both maternal and fetal death. This includes conditions like pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, which can lead to complications like stroke and cerebral hemorrhage, notes National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Institutes of Health (NIH). Other risk factors include pre-existing hypertension and age, and these conditions contribute to rising maternal death rates, particularly in certain demographics, reports American Heart Association Journals and Rutgers University.
  
  Blood pressure and maternal mortality
  • Leading cause:
    High blood pressure disorders, such as chronic hypertension and pre-eclampsia, are a leading cause of maternal and perinatal mortality worldwide.
    
    
  • Conditions and complications:
    • Pre-eclampsia and eclampsia: Pre-eclampsia is a condition that causes high blood pressure during pregnancy. In severe cases, it can lead to eclampsia, which involves seizures and can be fatal.
      
      
    • Stroke and cerebral hemorrhage: High blood pressure puts stress on the heart and can lead to complications like stroke and cerebral hemorrhage, which are major causes of death.
      
      
    • Other complications: High blood pressure also increases the risk for other issues, such as kidney and heart disease, and can negatively impact both the mother and fetus.

https://www.google.com/search?q="BP+/+mother+deaths"&sca_esv=415e83c541284ed9&source=hp&ei=Z5LwaMTgHOOJptQP9I3igQg&iflsig=AOw8s4IAAAAAaPCgd1PXh97NvJrSkezKD56YpYSh8YI5&ved=0ahUKEwiEsM2vjaiQAxXjhIkEHfSGOIAQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq="BP+/+mother+deaths"&gs_lp=Egdnd3Mtd2l6IhQiQlAgLyBtb3RoZXIgZGVhdGhzIjIIEAAYgAQYogQyCBAAGIAEGKIEMggQABiABBiiBDIIEAAYgAQYogRIlGFQrSNYh15wAXgAkAEAmAFSoAHiAaoBATO4AQPIAQD4AQL4AQGYAgSgAv4BqAIKwgIKEAAYAxjqAhiPAcICBRAhGKABwgIFECEYqwKYAwnxBbDyceKMxs7XkgcBNKAHswmyBwEzuAf1AcIHBTAuMi4yyAcO&sclient=gws-wiz

-------------

I am sure they do, but I have not read about it.

 

[JohnEngelman]

I don't know much about Ayn Rand outside of the fact she was on that list of authors that teachers wanted us to read in high school that I didn't give a single care about. Like Noel Coward and JP Sarte and Emily Brontë.

After reading Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand Willian Buckley said, "There is no goodness here."

Gore Vidal said of the philosophy of Ayn Rand, "It is almost perfect in its immorality."

That was probably the only thing Buckley and Vidal agreed on.

The writings of Ayn Rand are seductively appealing to many teenagers, because she couches her evil in terms of freedom.

If I was a high school teacher I would rather assign my students to read Hitler's Mein Kampf, because it is obviously horrible.
.

 

[Noor]

If you think health care is expensive now, wait until it's 'free'

Years ago, I experienced the NHS and they charged me nothing. I was seen quickly and treated.
However, now days based on my UK friends experience the NSH, esp for serious issues and it all depends on where you are, how good your gp is, etc… if you need a specialist/consultant, it can be a long wait until you see one. Some of the home nursing staff are dingbats and it’s very slow to get home pt and ot, like several months if at all after hospital Discharge. In the US, it usually takes a week or less to start.
Now I am on Medicare an and b in the US, it is government insurance and I haven’t had a problem with it yet. There are more preauthorizations needed but they are faster than in private insurance and I get what need. There is a max out of pocket of $2000 for medications which is great for me.
I’m the UK, many of my meds are not available on NHS.
It’s a crap shoot.

 

[JohnEngelman]

Years ago, I experienced the NHS and they charged me nothing. I was seen quickly and treated.
However, now days based on my UK friends experience the NSH, esp for serious issues and it all depends on where you are, how good your gp is, etc… if you need a specialist/consultant, it can be a long wait until you see one. Some of the home nursing staff are dingbats and it’s very slow to get home pt and ot, like several months if at all after hospital Discharge. In the US, it usually takes a week or less to start.
Now I am on Medicare an and b in the US, it is government insurance and I haven’t had a problem with it yet. There are more preauthorizations needed but they are faster than in private insurance and I get what need. There is a max out of pocket of $2000 for medications which is great for me.
I’m the UK, many of my meds are not available on NHS.
It’s a crap shoot.

That is better than no health coverage, which is what millions of Americans have.

 

[Chernosoth]

American healthcare is so insanely expensive because it is a monopoly. The American Medical Association, in classic capitalist tradition, achieved market dominance and lobbied for laws to prevent competition. The century of arrogance and complacency let it become usurped by insurers and pharmaceutical corporations. Now they're all going down in flames. Building new healthcare from scratch is a long term project.

 

[MajorRewrite]

In two weeks, all of this will be solved. Crooked Donnie promised!

 

[stxjimmy]

In two weeks, all of this will be solved. Crooked Donnie promised!

Just as soon as he ends Russia Ukraine!

 

[MajorRewrite]

For 14 years Donnie has been saying he’s about to replace Obamacare with his new plan. The MAGA sheep believed every word.

 

[ishtat]

It's worth remembering that the most basic principle of Insurance is that the losses of the few will be paid my the many contributors. Entirely Socialist in basic concept.