Sick Around The World
My opinion on the advantages of the public health care system in other rich democratic countries is that the public gets the health care that they need and no one goes bankrupt due to health care insurance. Also when government controls the administrative cost. They save money and they can spend that money on medicine or technology. Furthermore, even though other people think that is a socialist system it has work fine for example Japan has a 80% of private hospital in which is a system that can work here in the U.S.
Viewing the report “Sick Around the World: Frontline by T.R Reid was very educational. Learning how all these five countries such as Great Britain, Japan, Germany, Taiwan and Switzerland has develop excellent health care plans for their residents.
In Great Britain for example, Government run National Health Service (NHS) is funded through taxes. The British are responsible to pays high tax revenue. The government owns the hospitals and the health care system covers everybody. There is no co-pay, no medical bills, no cost at all and patient may choose who they want to see. Patients must see a gatekeeper before they are able to see a specialist even though there is a long waiting list, that waiting time has been reduce for the better. General physician or gatekeepers receive an incentive or bonus for keeping their patient healthy. They make this possible by promoting healthy diet, routine check ups and most important paying close attention to patient health medical records.
Japan is the second riches country in the world; only spend 2% cost of health care. All Japanese by law must have health care insurance either by community plan or employer. Resident in Japan spend double the cost in health care per capita as the U.S meaning that Japanese visit the doctor more frequently and preform more routine MRI’s Scan, drugs and have more hospitalization stay. Hospitals are 80% privates. Government pays for the poor. Japanese have no waiting list to see a doctor. Furthermore, the insurance company cannot refuse to provide insurance to those with pre-existing illness and they are not permitted to make a profit as well. Japanese health ministry manages and controls the health care system. Every two years they negotiate the standard book prices. Doctors are not allowed to increase the standard care prices nor make a profit. The government intervenes if they do so by lowering the charge prices. Doctors must follow the official dictate price book. Residents in Japan have more life expectancy, lower mortality rate due to better health diet and life style this lead to excellent health care results.
Germany is the 3rd riches country in the world. Germany develop the idea of Bismarck model national health care system (NHCS) guiding to provide universal health care, for medical, dental, mental health even spa treatment. Germany residents health care plan is based on their income they have a co-pay of $15 every 3 months, but if they loose there jobs the health care insurance remains open. German parliament system states the “rich pay for the poor and where the ill are covered by the healthy” As they do in Japan where doctors can only charge a standard prices to patients. It helps to maintain standard control cost in health care system.
In Taiwan the nation went from poor to rich country within 20 years. Taiwan explored many health care systems all around the world and learned from the mistakes other countries made. In other word they eliminated the weakness of other health care systems and to give every one a equal health care system. They design their own health care system for the people of Taiwan to have equal access to health care, free choice of doctors, drugs, vision and Chinese medicine, in patient and out patient visit, no waiting time and no gatekeeper. They also don’t let the rich op out from health medical plan. They must have a “smart card” to visit the doctor in which this smart card provides all the patient health information and the medical bill goes directly to government health insurance office and is pay automatically. The program works by having only one government insures collecting the money.
In Switzerland health care system approved the law of LAMal (“The sickness”) a general public health system demonstrating a outstanding universal health cover and high quality of care to all patients. The health care system is fix and is the same for everyone. The insurers are not allowed to make a profit off the basic insurance but they can make a profit on supplemental plans such as patient private rooms in the hospital. Health insurance covers the costs of medical treatment and hospitalization of the insured. Switzerland residents must pay monthly premiums to the insurer and must pay the cost of medical consultations and treatments by annual deductible in which is call frandchise. The health care system works very good and no resident has gone on bankruptcy because of the health care system. Another highlight of this health care system administrative cost is 5.5 % compare to the 22% in the U.S.
In my community there is many people that complaint of paying high premium and on top of that they have to pay high co-payments and also have to pay a percentage of the bill that is not cover by the insurance company. If people in my community would pay a reasonable premium in which they don’t have to pay for their medications, have the option of selecting their own gatekeeper or specialist and not to worry about any medical bills would be a great health care system in the United State, for the fact that no one will go bankrupt because of health care cost.
