Healthcare in the US really that bad?

[JohnBrown1917]

Health Care in the US is likely the best in the world. You just have to pay for it.

Which makes it a terrible system.

[Smoe]

Virtually everyone is insured but now just because you're insured doesn't mean you're insured to go to any specific hospital. The Hospital I work for has at least 2 dedicated lines to tell people whether or not they are in network. If they see a physician out of network then their insurance will refuse to pay for the visit and they will have to pay full price which is often a staggering amount.

On top of this, Insurance companies decide when and what your medication will be. Most companies require the Dr. to give prior-authorization for medicine to be covered. Dr's and nurses have to send out tons of these and it's easy to overlook someone. Often times, if you get overlooked on the weekend you may not be able to get your medication until Monday which really sucks for cardiology patients and people who need anti-rejection meds. Often times patients won't find this out until they try to get their medication from their pharmacy only to find out it will cost them $200+ after they've run out of medication.

It's also important to know that when you are in the hospital your insurance company will immediately look into getting you discharged working with discharge planners to figure out how soon they can stop paying for your stay in the hospital. This often ends with patients being discharged before they should be and ending up back in the ER the very next day.

At least, that's how it works in Chicago as of today 1-30-19 (For every other country your date probably looks like 30-1-19)

[Najnaj]

If you have lots of money, NO.

If you do not have lots of money, YES.


The real problem is that it is incredibly expensive and cost ineffective. Americans pay 3 to 6 times as much for healthcare on average and statistically they are far, FAAAAR down.

A little known fact about the US health care system is that not only do they have universal healthcare, they pay nearly as much as the UK for it per person(low 2000/year for the US and high 2000/year for the UK a few years ago when I last checked and this does NOT include insurance payments, only tax money). The question is, when does it kick in. A nurse gave me an example from her practice. This one lady tried to get insulin for her diabetes but this was not covered. A few months down the road she needed to have one leg amputated due to untreated diabetes and this was covered. Guess which option cost more.

[Draco-Onis]

No. When I was poor, in college, the government helped cover the cost of my child. Now that I am not poor I still have good healthcare coverage, it only shot up thanks to Obamacare, that's my only complaint.

So you are saying that even though health care cost have been rising every year yours was immune to it until Obamacare came along

[ghotihook]

The answer is "it depends". I pay $150/month for medical, dental, and eye insurance. I went to urgent care twice last year and didn't pay anything. We also get free mental and physical therapy (which is new this year). Also yearly wellness exams are free.

[Tidestorm]

No its not that bad. However we are dealing with a population heavily stricken with chronic disease -- and many of them (not all) don't take self responsibility for their own health. Won't take their meds, wont manage their weight, wont stop smoking, wont stop drinking -- and then when they end up in the hospital again they blame the system (Healthcare in the US sucks! I'm back in the hospital!)

They call saying their antibiotic prescription is too expensive, we get it changed to a $4 generic. They then say thats still too expensive, they can't afford that -- but they had no problem affording their $30 Percocet prescription and pack of smokes.

The Healthcare system in the US definitely has its share of problems -- but its not just the system that has issues...

[Tidestorm]

This one lady tried to get insulin for her diabetes but this was not covered. A few months down the road she needed to have one leg amputated due to untreated diabetes and this was covered. Guess which option cost more.

I think there is more to this story.

But hey, whatever supports your narrative.

[unbound]

Healthcare is pretty good in the US...if you can afford it.

If you can't afford it, the US is pretty close to the bottom compared to any other advanced economy. Kind of funny considering that the US is the only advanced economy that has a strong religious population...so much for Christian values.

- - - Updated - - -

75 million Americans are insured through Medicaid now. About twice the population of Canada.

65 through Medicare, this is for old people mostly and is expensive AF.

49% are insured through their employer.


This is mostly due to Obamacare.

/facepalm

This has nothing to do with Obamacare. The US has been slipping lower and lower long before the ACA.

[El Caballero de Olmedo]

600k people in the US go bankrupt from medical bills EVERY YEAR.

Yes, it is that bad.

That's truly horrendous. I can even begin to imagine it.

[UDL_Vis]

Which makes it a terrible system.

Right there with you.

[fathewathe]

Was just perusing another thread and the common refrain that the US spends more on healthcare than other developed countries but gets worse health outcomes came up. It got me wondering is that really the case and if so why? So I came across this article in Forbes.

http://https://www.forbes.com/sites/.../#1ed9e7851232

An excerpt



The article mentions several other confounding factors from differences in rates of poverty and reporting of infant mortality to liability laws and volume of higher cost procedures. Essentially the case is made that it’s not an apples to apples comparison.

I think the author brings up some good points. Is it the fault of the US Healthcare system that obesity and diabetes are such large problems? That malpractice suits are an ever present boogie man to physicians? Is it incumbent upon healthcare institutions to manage poverty, food deserts, and horny teenagers?

As the 2020 cycle begins to ramp up, I’m sure healthcare will be on everyone’s platform with candidates like Kamala Harris advocating Medicare for all. I think it’s fair to ask what exactly we expect our healthcare system to realistically accomplish.

Is it free at the point of access? No it isn't. You let your poor die.

Stop trying to start a discussion that was settled in the civilized world decades ago. What next, is paedophilia a bad thing?

- - - Updated - - -

No its not that bad. However we are dealing with a population heavily stricken with chronic disease -- and many of them (not all) don't take self responsibility for their own health. Won't take their meds, wont manage their weight, wont stop smoking, wont stop drinking -- and then when they end up in the hospital again they blame the system (Healthcare in the US sucks! I'm back in the hospital!)

Yeah those parents who can't afford operations when their kids get cancer, it is all their fault....

Please do your bit for us healthcare and remove yourself from the gene pool.

[zenkai]

So you are saying that even though health care cost have been rising every year yours was immune to it until Obamacare came along

The rate of my insurance premium spikes far outpaced what what was spent, you used a childish emote, you lost the argument.

[Donald Hellscream]

I am sure the quality of healthcare is up there among the best available treatments but that is if you have the money to pay for it in the first place and some treatments are super fucking expensive even with an insurance to cover some of the costs.

[Draco-Onis]

The rate of my insurance premium spikes far outpaced what what was spent, you used a childish emote, you lost the argument.

That is illogical I am referring to the rate increase per year which normally happens anyways, you insinuated that your insurance rate never increased.

[Soeroah]

I've heard people in the US have to pay out of pocket for ambulances to the point some people are injured but beg not to have one called because they can't afford it, and that doesn't sound like it could be real to me.

[Ivanstone]

I have a job, so my health care is fine.

What's your deductible? Not all employee insurance plans are good. Over 40% of Americans have high deductible insurance plans.

The poor have Medicaid. People without insurance are largely fuckups too lazy to get a job or too lazy to fill out the paperwork.

Unless you live in a red state. Even then you might still be poor as fuck and still make too much to get Medicaid.

You’ll hear a lot of sob stories, but the ACA was supposed to fix all of this. If it didn’t, blame those who drafted the legislation and voted on it.

The ACA mostly works. It would work better if the US didn't constantly elect shitheads who try to fuck with it because the black guy came up with it.

[Daveon]

The primary issue is access to healthcare, not the quality of the healthcare.

When you see charts/reports that go on about "The US pays far more than everyone else per capita, but has far lower health outcomes..." Its not because we are paying more and yet getting substandard care... Its because those who can pay are paying A LOT more and getting exceptional care, but simultaneously many people are unable to pay and getting little to no care.

This is exactly it. Those who can afford great care get great care. The rest get less. That's why the rich from other countries come to the US for care.

Then you have middle class in the US who can afford great care...for a while... then go bankrupt and their great care ceases...

[Greyvax]

I've heard people in the US have to pay out of pocket for ambulances to the point some people are injured but beg not to have one called because they can't afford it, and that doesn't sound like it could be real to me.

I agree that this is pretty damn ridiculous and definitely needs to change.

[Bers3rk]

It's horrible from my perspective. I had a car wreck where I fractured several vertebrae in my back and I've not been able to breath normally since. I've had access to healthcare and doctors the whole time. The biggest issue I have seen is that most doctors seem to be complete idiots. I've seen probably about 30 now for the same problem and none of them agree with me on what is causing my breathing issues and then they throw their hands up and say they have no idea what is going on nor do they know anyone who would. Incompetence 100%.

[spanishninja]

I agree that this is pretty damn ridiculous and definitely needs to change.

Me and my wife had that happen when she had to be rushed to a hospital an hour away due to pregnancy complications. The thing is that if the ambulance was in-network it would have been fine, but because it was just some random out-of-network company that showed up with the van they tried to stick us with a $2k bill. Luckily, we DO have good insurance and our provider got them down to $200.