Bill Sykes' Newsletter from America.
(March 2002)
An ex-Brit gives his views-(without fear
or favor)---of the American Scene
The American Health Care System.
You would think that in a country as affluent as the United
States of America, that every citizen would have the best
health care in the world at affordable prices.
WRONG.
 Health
care economists in the United States have found that by
conservative estimates at least 40 million people were uninsured
at the start of this year. At least two million people lost
their health care insurance in the last year, as unemployment
rose and consumers could not afford the rising prices.
Employers are also concerned about rising health care costs
and are in many cases increasing their employees co-payments
for medical services including prescription drugs, and in
some cases are opting out of the provision of employee health
care benefits altogether.
This is a very complex subject, so please bear with me
as I try to explain some of the intricacies of the system.
Most middle and working class people have been forced by
economic circumstances into "Healthcare Maintenance
Organizations", (HMOs).
When a person attains the retirement age of 65 years, he
or she is then entitled to Government provided "Medicare"
benefits, which cover a "percentage" of health
care costs, by the subtraction from their "Social Security"
benefits of $60 per month per person. In order to cover
the difference between the Medicare benefit for services
provided by doctors, hospitals, etc. most people have to
take out "supplementary" insurance.
By the way, Medicare does not cover the cost of prescription
drugs.
Some companies, (but not all), provide benefits that cover
prescription drugs for a nominal cost of say $5 per prescription,
which in most cases only covers a 90 day supply of generic
drugs. That is on top of doctor's office visits, which cost
at least $10 per visit.
 So
you can see that elderly and disabled members of Medicare
HMOs, (many HMOs are currently discontinuing health care
availability for seniors or other people who maybe in poor
health), are definitely at a disadvantage and are facing
health care costs that are way beyond their means.
Out of pocket expenses for health care rose 62% in 2001,
and the cost of prescription drugs, for the not so wealthy,
meant that in severe cases the difference between eating
and the treatment of their health care problems has become
a big problem.
Honestly, this has happened.
Health Maintenance Organizations in general are prone to
cutting costs at the expense of the patients and will delay
costly treatments as long as possible. I'm led to believe
that the British National Health Care system conducts similar
practices. Please tell me that my information is wrong,
as I have always have had nothing but praise for the British
system, (Within limits of course).
To give you an instance; The last time I made an appointment
with my HMO Primary Care Physician, the first appointment
that I could get was six weeks from the day I made the appointment.
Before I'm taken to task, the HMO does have an "Acute
Care" Department where I can obtain a walk in, or a
twenty four hour appointment with the doctor on duty, or
if it 's an emergency I can go to the Emergency Room of
the hospital contracted with the HMO.
 I
must be fair and give details of alternatives.
Let me put it this way if you have gainful employment and
an employer sponsored health care plan you will have access
to well trained doctors and some of the finest hospitals
in the world.
It is a great pity that such an affluent nation as the
United States, has Health Care coverage problems, which
are a national disgrace.
As I said in a previous paragraph this is a very complex
subject deserving of several pages of text, but in order
not to bore the reader I have done the best that I can with
the time available by giving you a very abbreviated version
of the problem.
Shall I go on---NO---I think that you have the picture.
By the way how is the British National Health Care System
coping these days. ???
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