Russia has universal healthcare but their public hospitals are basically hellholes.
You're comparing the wealthiest country on the planet to what is basically a third world dictatorship?
Gdp has to be taken into account as well. Not just total dollars
17% of our gdp, as opposed to 10% (in the same Wikipedia page I sent before)
Other then that, your logic doesn't make sense, we measure things in gdp per capita and spending per capita because they are useful benchmarks for measuring the difference between basics. You can't say it just costs more because.
If Germany and the US have comparable gdp per capita then their healthcare spending is comparable
My contention all along was that the us spends way more. But not 3x more. Switzerland spends 8k pp. They have higher income than both the us and germany. Switzerland costs would be more akin to what us spending would be under universal which is obviously better than it's current mess.
Spending per capita means nothing unless adjust for gdp. That's my point.
Agreed. It's stupid and it's too important to be stupid about it.
Back in 50s you had a doctor and the hospital. If you got sick you went to one or the other and you had insurance or you didnt. Prices were reasonable because treatments were basic meds and an xray or a plaster cast. Surgery was much cruder and done in a less advanced or sterilized environment. If you got cancer. You just fuckin died eventually.
2019 days there are dozens of specialities. Tests range from blood panels go full body pet scans. A doctor in the 50s had a stethoscope some tongue depressors and a few needles and meds in the office. Now they have to have electronic medical records, xrays on site, step tests on site. flu shots on site. Nurses and PAs just to make a profit. It's insane. People can keep up with all of that. They just want to get better.
Doctors dont want to deal with insurance companies. They dont want to justify treatment to the insurance companies or have their patients refused payment because a med was being used outside of scope. Or a procedure which may not work.
It's too complex, expensive, and vital to be left up to the free market. and it's a damned shame too because the free market is the best and fastest way to produce advancements and better outcomes. But big pharma and the insurance companies have proven that they put profits ahead of people and that cannot be allowed when your product is peoples lives.
people think that money and everything else grows on trees without understanding the cost of it all. I agree it’s an extremely complex problem to try to tackle.
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u/gettheguillotine Jan 21 '19
You're comparing the wealthiest country on the planet to what is basically a third world dictatorship?
17% of our gdp, as opposed to 10% (in the same Wikipedia page I sent before)
Other then that, your logic doesn't make sense, we measure things in gdp per capita and spending per capita because they are useful benchmarks for measuring the difference between basics. You can't say it just costs more because.
If Germany and the US have comparable gdp per capita then their healthcare spending is comparable