I had to pull out my own teeth, woman tells Blair – Britain – Times Online — Can someone explain to me why national health care is England is so bad while in France it’s so good. Most smart Brits go to France to be treated in fact. What is the basic difference? This story below is pathetic.
TONY BLAIR was confronted by a pensioner yesterday over his broken promises on NHS dentists. She had to pull out seven of her own teeth herself.
Valerie Holsworth would have liked to have had her teeth extracted professionally but she could not get an NHS appointment.
In a grilling by the public on Sky News, the Prime Minister said he was recruiting overseas dentists to fill the gaps. But Mrs Holsworth said: “We had three in Scarborough. The first went home with a criminal record, the second was not even qualified and the third made so many mistakes they sacked him.” Mr Blair, who promised in 1999 that everyone would be able to see an NHS dentist within two years, replied: “The problem is, I cannot suddenly just produce more dentists. We have to train them. We are actually opening new dental training schools and so on.”
via meetsy
Blair “promised in 1999 that everyone would be able to see an NHS dentist within two years.” Let me get this straight. Blair PROMISED a two year wait to see a dentist?! Two f-ing years to see a dentist?! How in the fk are you supposed to wait to years to see a dentist?! And what’s the wait now, a decade?!
Why don’t we simply face the truth and accept that Britain is now a third world country!
I’m British. What is this “dentist” you speak of?
The UK spends much less per capita than France, and has more poor people, so what is spent goes to long term treatments rather than primary care. (For example the life expectancy in Manchester is 8 years lower than London).
King’s Fund 2001 figures via Google cache or PDF.
But these figures don’t tell the full story. French doctors want to know what really ails you. A visit to a GP in France will rarely take less than an hour. In England, you’re lucky if you get more than a couple of minutes and the doctor even looks up at you. He or she will be too busy writing the next patient’s prescription for Valium or Prozac.
I wish Ima would learn to read English.
NHS works well in most nations with some variant on the theme and a populace that accepts fair taxation to pay for the programs. The best example of using fairness to ignore the upper middle class twits who would still rather whine about taxes — than to contribute an equitable share to the common pot — was the final resolution of France’s NHS via-a-vis pre-natal care.
Rather than go through all the crap with nouveau riche battling for years over “appropriate” tax rates vs. who was eligible for what – they simply made complete pre-natal care available for every woman. Period. End of discussion.
In the long run, those who could afford and wanted more than [the damned good] basic care could go out and spend the extra bucks. The wealthy usually end up not taking advantage of the basic program because they are reluctant to be seen alongside working women who benefit greatly from the program.
Not especially different from the original discussions about public education being a requisite for a modern nation. We still haven’t caught up with that one, either.
To say that “NHS works well in most nations” is pure BS. It simply does NOT work. How in the heck is waiting for over two years to see a dentist “working”?! Have you ever had a toothache before? Have you ever needed a root canal? Have you ever had an impacted tooth?! Can you imagine waiting for over two years to get any of those fixed? That’s NOT working. And let’s not forget that all those taxes being paid for NHS are being wasted. You guys might as well start burning your tax dollars, at least you could get SOME advantage out of it, e.g., roasting hotdogs.
There are a lot of people in the US who think we should switch to socialized medicine. Luckily I love near the Canadian border so I know better. There are plenty of Canadians who come here to get medical care they simply cannot get in their own country.
And we take care of the poor in the US too. When I was a poor uninsured student I was involved in a huge accident. I racked up over $65,000 in medical bills. The government took care of all of it. I got immediate care and I didn’t have to pay a dime.
Life is too important to put on a waiting list.
And we take care of the poor in the US too…
When I’ve stopped laughing, Mr Fish, I’ll read that out to the guy sleeping on my doorstep.
Ima,
I am so glad that you loved near the Canadian border. To have loved anywhere is beautiful. For it is better to loved and lost then to have never loved at all. Sorry to hear of your loss. (I assume so because you now know better)
I lived in Canada for 45 years. The socialized medical care works well. It is not perfect though and one can always find some fault. But the benefits justify the program. I cannot remember the exact statistics though I know they are close.
Up to 35 % of private Health Insurance money in the US goes toward overhead. That is paying the office workers to answer the phone and say no, big fancy buildings, kickbacks, extremely high executive salaries, and lobbyists. Canadian Health Insurance is run by the Provincial Governments and pays less then 1% overhead. Doctors submit one bill and get paid about six weeks later. American Doctors submit many bills and wait months to find out if they will get paid.
Over 40 million people are uninsured here in the US. Sure they will get treatment, in a Hospital, when they get around to it. That is to discourage the uninsured from visiting THEIR Hospital because even though the law says they must get treated, no one will pay the Hospital.
Insured medical bills is the largest cause of personal bankruptcy in America. Even though the insurance is paying 80%, that last 20% can be a killer. I know of a lady in a car accident. After the at fault driver was cared for, there wasn’t enough of his insurance to pay for her treatment. Because she couldn’t work, she lost her insurance and is now bankrupt. She still needs more treatment. That wouldn’t have happened in Canada.
In Canada I lived in large cities and never had any problem finding any medical practitioner; Doctor, Dentist, or Chiropractor. Here I live in a town of 3,500. I drive 40 miles for my Dentist. Most of the Doctors are sub-standard.
My Doctor in Canada would take the time to look at whatever I saw him about. Here, the practice is in and out with a prescription. And don’t forget your $20 co-pay.
Infant mortality is much less in Canada then in the US. Because the Doctors are more interested in wellness and know that it is cheaper to spend a little more time up front then a lot afterwards. Male life expectancy is about 7 years more and female expectancy is about 9 years more then is the American expectancy.
About 15% of the US GNP goes to Health Care in the US. I believe the number in Canada is less then 9%. And Canada outspends ALL of Europe by GNP.
My parents, who are retired, spend $2 for each prescription. I had an elderly neighbor here that couldn’t get a prescription filled because she didn’t have the money. In Canada, we look at my parents and all of the older people and recognized that they are the ones that built the country. They went off to fight Hitler or worked in the war industries. Their labor built the economy after the war. They bore the children that now run the country. Now that they are retired, let us give something back to them. Here in the US, well, I’ll leave that one.
Many medical procedures in Canada have waiting lists. Too many and too many of those lists are too long. That is a problem that is recognized by all. The system has been efficiencied to the bone. That does need correction. In the US though, the Insurance companies like to play the waiting game. Without reason, they arbitrarily deny necessary medical procedures. Only after much fighting can they be made to pay. Then they will only pay a portion or for a set time that will not cover the full treatment. The Canadian and American problems are really the same thing, only different to the right wing ideologues thinking
The most efficient medical system in the US just happens to resemble the Canadian system. Guess what !!! The Federal Government owns it too. The Veterans Hospitals. The Doctors are fee based, they are salaried, so they are more wellness orientated. The VA buys drugs in bulk to save money. They provide after care. And most remarkable, they cater to the poorer, uninsured, elder population then do the private for profit hospitals.
Ima, don’t take this personal. I made a joke at your expense but the rest I firmly believe in. BTW. I am married to an American Nurse.
Just my two cents worth.
correction to my comment of 4/1/5005
3rd last paragraph should have stated that Doctors at VA hospitals are NOT fee based.
I’m unconvinced a government agency can be more efficient or more motivated to improve the customer experience than a for profit company. Well what if the company has a monopoly? Answer: a government is a monopoly already.
If people pay less, short cuts must be made. Less advanced technology, less trained doctors, no money for medical research, etc. The US has the best trained doctors, the most advanced tech, and produces more medical research than most other countries combined. Think about that.
Unfortunately health insurance is simply subsidization. Anyone with knowledge of economics 101 knows that subsidization only results in increased prices – hurting those who don’t have insurance.
I don’t purchase health insurance, and instead have ~$30k that I can easily liquidate come an emergency. I’m my own insurance company.