I normally offer cash and ask for discounts and call around to many offices; works really well.

+1

In the free market system, apparently the word 'monopoly' doesn't exist.

b

How does healthcare work in other countries? In Canada do people have health insurance or does the govt just take care of everyone's medical bills? Do doctors set the price for an operation or does the govt just say we pay you X for performing a knee replacement?

In Canada the Provinces run the health insurance plans, but it's partially funded by the Federal Government and (I believe) the Federal Government sets basic criteria that the plans have to meet.

In Ontario, basically everyone (that meets residency requirements) has OHIP (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario...Insurance_Plan). When you go to the Doctor the services that are covered by OHIP are automatically billed to OHIP and the patient never sees the bill.

I believe that OHIP sets the reimbursement rate for any procedure it covers. I don't know the exact details but I think it's illegal to offer covered procedures for non-OHIP rates - and I think if you have OHIP you have to use it.

It's also very common for people to have private health insurance through their employers. This is supplemental insurance that covers things that aren't covered by OHIP.

Just found: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_in_Canada which covers this in a lot more detail than what I wrote.

They can in Massachusetts.
http://www.massresources.org/health-care.html

lol you can set your watch to this type of obfuscation in pretty much any discussion like this

"The free market does it BEST!"

"But the free market isn't doing it best in this case, in fact, it's doing it WORSE than everyone else, WORST OF ALL EVEN."

"But IT'S NOT REALLY FREE MARKET, IF IT WAS MORE FREE MARKET THEN FREE MARKET ARRRGLE BLARGGHLE!"

It is simultaneously a counterpoint-proof argument and built-in excuse for failure.

ETA: ILOVEPOKER929's explanation sounds much more smarty tho

wtf are you talking about? It's NOT free, despite you wishing it were so your "but the free market isn't doing it best in this case" argument would work.

I realize that it isn't completely free. A completely free market does not exist. ETA: Though the US market is much freer than any comparable market in the world of which I am aware. My point was to lol at the notion that the free market is awesomer when we really have no way of knowing that, and what we do know indicates otherwise wrt this particular issue. (And the built-in excuse that "the market really isn't free" when this is pointed out)

But the level of freedom compared to other countries isn't what's really relevant.

How free is the US healthcare market compared to other industries in the US?

Sure it is. At least it is if your goal is to compare and contrast the different systems. If I am to advocate for or against a move to (for example) a single-payer system, I want to know how well it is working/not working in places already using a single-payer system. I think that examining the market forces in play is a big part of that.

Difficult to say. Of course you and I will probably disagree on this point but I think that this is actually much less relevant than the comparison to other countries. It is a simple matter of fact that sick people are simply not profitable, and the sickest people are the least profitable/most costly.

Just like to point out that this really isnt true. If you have money in Canada you can still go to the US to get anything done that you want. You can also wait and get it done for free in Canada.

I think in general, the care debate only really matters to people in the middle class and down. If you are rich, no matter what country you are in, you'll get good care, and if you can't get it in your own country you can just go elsewhere.

Yeah but it's still SOH-SHAWLLLL-ISM!

OK, fine. So how does taking a highly regulated system and calling it a "free market" help you do that?

small aside, but i remember reading somewhere about how the government regulates the size a plum in a package of plums can be. Must be within a certain measurement to be considered a proper plum.

I have a thread about produce regulation in the EU but mean old mr wookie will ban me if I bump it.

Also, I've never seen plums in a package FWIW.

lol @ packaged plums

So I thought I would detail my medical experience in a Socialist country that has free healthcare that American critics say is terrible.

I had a badly infected finger that I let go to long. Could have gone to my doc on Friday but to busy. Saturday it hurts like heck and is swollen. I go the pharmacy and the she says go to the Hospital after hours clinic. Turns out long weekend and closed. I call my medi center and also closed. Sunday morning my plan is to go to a medi centre close by that opens at 8:45. I show up at 9 and 10 people in the waiting room I leave. I come back at 1 and there are 6 people ahead of me. I wait about 60 minutes see a doctor that freezes my finger opens and drains the wound. He wraps it and gives me a prescription and says I need to come in tom to have it rewrapped. I fill the prescription for $30. Feel great as no pain. Next day I go to the medi centre a nurse rewraps it and doc takes quick look. Total time 10 minutes. I will need to do this for 3 or 4 more visits

Total Cost nothing No 5 hours waiting. Ill take my CDN system any day over the great US system

I don't think it was plums, actually. I remembered which fruit it was the other day, but I'll be damned if I didn't forget again.

Damn you, undiagnosed.. brain.. thing.. make.. not smart.

Does not compute

But really, you couldn't wait behind 10 people? It was worth waiting a few hours at work or whatever in pain to wait behind 6 people?

Well, of course. That said, you're talking about a huge part of the population.

b

If I was in car crash on holiday in the US, and had no insurance and no money whatsoever, would they just allow me to die?

Accept fpps?

No, the hospital would care for you. They would then bill you and try to collect, probably ruining your credit. When they don't collect, they will get some reimbursement from the government.

I doubt his credit would get hit. If his home country has half way decent medical coverage, they would have to cover emergency on holiday?

No.

Not being insured when going abroad can be very expensive. You would be a fool to travel to the US without insurance.

Definitely not the case in most of Canada and I would suspect elsewhere as well.