Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Yaya]

Frontline did a piece on how certain countries do well for its citizens in health care, and how awful the system is in the United States. You can either watch the special in parts online or read the text.


http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundtheworld/

[Ukon]

I don't buy this whole "the US health care system is crap"....expensive? Yes. Crap? No.

I hear far more complaining about the healthcare system of countries with socialized medicine from people in them than bragging. I swear, The biggest cheerleaders of socialized medicine live in the USA.....

[Doutdes]

[ChopChaeJoe]

does the US even have a healthcare system? I never saw any of it.

[Fresh Prince]

Insurance companies make their profits by taking in revenues from customers and spending as little of those revenues as possible when paying for those customers' medical care. How is that not the best system in the world?

Personally, I don't think people should be able to choose their own doctor as they might choose a bad one. The insurance company requirements of going to one of their pre-approved "network" doctors, in order to get the full 70% of medical costs paid, makes perfect sense, especially when getting a really expensive treatment that is tens of thousands of dollars.

Also, insurance companies provide a helpful "claims adjuster," that provides excellent customer service while reviewing your claim for things that the insurance company shouldn't have to pay for because it existed prior to your purchasing of insurance at that company. They answer all the questions that might come up like: "Will getting treatment increase my monthly payments because I'm more of a risk?" or, "Will you drop me after I get treatment?", or "If I quit my job after I get treatment, will it still be possible to buy insurance from other companies, as I will now be a higher risk customer?"

Actually, going to a socialized system would increase taxes, and that is a bad thing. Suppose you make $2000 a month and you pay $200 a month for insurance that covers 70% of treatment costs for some things and 50% of costs for others. That's 10% of your salary. If a socialized system were in place, your taxes might increase by 12% or 15%, which is more than 10%.

Also, socialized healthcare is a form of socialism, which is just a step away from communism and they are atheists that don't believe in God. That's why they don't have faith healing churches where poor people go when they have a serious illness and can't afford the 30% of treatment costs that the insurance companies don't cover.

[Yaya]

After watching the special, it made me never want to live in the U.S. again precisely for health reasons. And about the socialism part, well, other countries in Europe have much better healthcare systems than the U.S. while spending far less money, yet they also have leading global companies that can compete with American firms.

The medical and pharmaceutical companies are part of the problem, as they want to squeeze people for every last penny. I understand that R&D costs billions and that most companies don't profit much from new medicines, if at all. But gosh, no country that was featured in the documentary says they've heard of a bankrupcy because of medical bills.

[Suwon23]

[Jeweltone]

I found myself on the unwanted end of the "American health care system" just today. I am basically on the county system (underemployed after returning from Korea), and cannot get one of my (common) monthly prescriptions covered by the "socialized" insurance. So I went prescription price shopping. After 45 minutes on the phone, here are the results:

Pharmacy A) $59.95/mo.
Pharmacy B) $71.24/mo
Pharmacy C) $70.99/mo.
Pharmacy D) $56.32/mo.
Pharmacy E) $60.00/mo.
Pharmacy F) $56.49/mo
Random Online Pharmacies) $139.99/mo. (plus shipping)

Same medication, same dosage.

Ridiculous

[Yaya]

Seriously, the high price of healthcare is reason enough for me to not live in the United States again.

[kimchipig]

The USA is the only country in the G-8 without a national health insurance system. There are only three in the 30 OECD countries. The USA has the highest spending by a long shot and poor infant mortality rates, lower life expectancies and appalling obesity rates.

But of course, if the system is American, it has to be the best. America is always right, just like it was about Iraq.

[sargx]

The thing about the profitability of America's health sector is that we have to finance our own research and development. If you take the money out of medicine, you'll take the incentive out of research.

If we're forced to adopt a socialized health care system I sincerely hope we ignore people who make bad lifestyle choices. I don't want to pay for some fatty's triple bypass.

[Yaya]

[kimchipig]

Easier access to family doctors tends to lead to a healthier population in general. Obesity rates are much higher in the USA than in countries with universal health care. It is especially bad with blacks and Hispanics. Really, the number of people without healthcare in the USA is shocking.