National Healthcare

[flyingvan]

   Once I'm appointed Earth Czar, here's what I'm going to do about healthcare.

    Each and every congressional district (I'll keep the bicameral legislature) will have a government run hospital.  It will be the teaching hospital.  If you are admitted, you will be in a ward with lots of other people.  The food will be bland, the TV will have one channel.  Government can set whatever level of service and care they see fit there.  The uninsured, underinsured, undocumented,  and people comfortable with government providing for them can go there.
     At the same time government will back 100% away from the rest of healthcare.  No unfunded mandates.  No JCAHO.  If a hospital is doing a crappy job,  word will get out quick and low patient census and lawsuits will do them in.  Good hospitals will thrive.  If you are not content with what government can provide, you will have the option of working hard and getting a job that offers insurance to cover you and your family.  There will be private rooms, good food, cable.
     It's a lot like education.  Everyone has to pay for it, but if you aren't satisfied with the government schools, you can pay more and send your kids to a private school.  How is  this fair---rich kids are getting a better education, after all.
     Every country with socialized medicine develops a multi-tier system eventually.  Why not just start there now?  I believe everyone should have access to basic care.  I do not believe everyone should have access to the same niceties, regardless of ability to pay.
    Everyone will have access to an appendectomy.  Everyone is covered.

[Don_P]

Works for me  Last time I was in I surfed 57 channels and nothing was on anyway. I've been treated in teaching and apparently learning on the job hospitals and have luckily survived both.

It did take us 2 months to get signed up with obamacare and I'm still awaiting a bill which is now overdue so am not totally sure it "took". For us the premium I pay is now 22% of what it was although the entire premium is now 144% of what we have been paying, same insuror and same coverage from what I can tell. Can't say I'm seeing sustainability in this form.

[Woodsrule]

Flyingvan, your'e right on track with your multi-tier system idea. I have lots of relatives in  Canada and they will tell you their "free" healthcare is anything but. Also, the "free" care takes a REAL long time to obtain as there is a shortage of docs in Canada. The good ones migrate right over the border or stay in Canada and work right over the border. In the US, they make double what they do in Canada and that is as it should be - good docs make good pay and mediocre ones stay in Canada. What's the future to hold for us? I believe our level of care will degenerate and working folks will be stuck paying docs who perform a better quality of care. I've already seen local doctors NOT accepting any healthcare insurance and they're taking a $1500-2000 year retainer from their clients. That payment allows all routine care and emergency care they can provide for in-house. Sort of like it was 100 years ago. Is is better or worse than what we had a few years ago? Time will tell.