Health Care talk in Zurich on the 9th of September!!
TR Reid, former news correspondent, turned author wrote "The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care" which was published late this August. I haven't read it, and I'm sure most people here in Switzerland haven't had the chance to either. However, in the Frontline documentary on the ailing US health care system Reid makes a very interesting point, that has somehow failed to enter into the public debate over Congress' attempt to create a universal, or mandatory, health care system: we could use the other developed nations systems as examples.
The facts about health care are: the US spends more annually per person per capita than all other industrialized nation, life expectancy has fallen behind Chile and Cuba, hundreds of thousands of people go bankrupt from health care costs per year, and even patients on medicare have to have supplemental insurance to cover all their medical bills. US doctors pay for their educations, we boast the best nurses in the world, and most advanced technologies to cure our ailments- how could we implement a more universal health care system without losing those things that make the US health system one of the best in the world?
Reid argues that we only need to look in our backyard or across the pond.
"...foreign health-care models are not really "foreign" to America, because our crazy-quilt health-care system uses elements of all of them. For Native Americans or veterans, we're Britain: The government provides health care, funding it through general taxes, and patients get no bills. For people who get insurance through their jobs, we're Germany: Premiums are split between workers and employers, and private insurance plans pay private doctors and hospitals. For people over 65, we're Canada: Everyone pays premiums for an insurance plan run by the government, and the public plan pays private doctors and hospitals according to a set fee schedule. And for the tens of millions without insurance coverage, we're Burundi or Burma: In the world's poor nations, sick people pay out of pocket for medical care; those who can't pay stay sick or die..." (Reid, WashingtonPost http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/21/AR2009082101778_3.html)
Come join us to watch the Frontline episode where Reid briefly looks at 5 industrialized nations and their paths to a more uniform health care systems- and discuss with us your issues, concerns, and comments about the current health care debate happening in the US.
All constructive opinions and criticisms are welcome- looking forward to seeing you there!
(On a side note, the bill in the House can be located here: http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h3200/text )
