It’s always interesting to see how a theory or plan fails in practice (rationing, no coverage, doctors no longer wanting patients!), when morality is stood on its head. The principle of individual rights, upon which this country was founded, was in essence a moral principle preserving each person’s right to his own life and happiness. When it is upheld, including allowing everyone to work and trade as they see fit, progress and prosperity has ensued. When it’s flouted (whether by Bush, Romney or Obama) the result is suffering and impoverishment. Thanks for connecting the dots as it applies to healthcare.

Sorry.. they’re busy protesting at Mr Obama’s proposed speech at Notre Dame next spring..

I had to get a new primary care physician two years ago when mine finally said to hell with the system and started a new concierge practice, $6,000/year to get in and cash on the barrelhead (but they do make housecalls). Do you think this sort of thing isn’t going to be widespread under Obamacare unless it is specifically forbidden?

According to an NPR story last year, the Harvard Medical School Class of 2007 had ONE graduate planning on being a general practitioner. When you combine that with the increased demands that “universal” coverage brings about, is there any surprise that we have long waits for appointments and the ability to see only nurse pratitioners or physician’s assistants? CVS Pharmacy’s “Minute Clinic” will be the new paradigm for healthcare delivery in the US!

“Make more doctors” Like the skill set that a person must have to become an MD is untapped in tens of thousands of our fellow citizens. More likely, especially under Obamacare, the profession will be dumbed down to add the necessary warm bodies, with the attendant patient outcomes.

“Import more foreign doctors” Any foreign MD worth his salt is already here, as this is the final destination for a solid income for an MD. I had my first operation last year at Mass General Hospital, performed by a Pakistani-Brit surgeon, assisted by a Korean doctor, with an Icelandic anaesthesiologist. They’re already here, vivo.

The dirty little secret here in Massachusetts is that there is a substantial number of people still free riding on the system. My friend is a nurse at Boston teaching hospital, and about 25% of her caseload is free care (primarily homeless and illegal aliens). Due to their lifestyles, they are frequent flyers through the ER as part of the “free care” pool if they can’t make the minimal standards for Mass Health, our Medicaid program. Oh, and said emergency rooms here in Mass have recently seen a spike in violence and sexual assaults, directly attributable to the overcrowding and lack of security.

An unintended consequence of the Mass Plan is that our hospitals have become the problem patient dumping ground for the rest of New England. My friend reports more borderline cases arriving from the hinterlands; I’d be interested to know what their insurance status is.

Make all those Catholic SAINTS that perform MIRACLES accessible to the public. Cheapest health care you ever saw.

“How you gonna get more doctors, vivo?”

I perfectly understand what it takes to become a doctor. Several relatives are in the field. Short term, you entice foreign doctors to come here. Long term, you entice more Americans to get an MD. Short term, you suffer the waiting lines. Long term, you get your doctors. Who said gratification must be instant?

See 38. Gerry. Add China, India, Iran, East Europe. Many brilliant minds there.

BTW, many of the doctors I know are foreigners.

Unfortunately, nothing motivates a liberal/leftist/”progressive” more than seeing the utter failure of his ideas in practice — such failures cause these reverse-wired, reality-evading, mindless “useful idiots” to push still harder for the ever-greater implementation of their wildly insane schemes.

No one sane can possibly believe that a 1,990 page healthcare “plan” cooked up by empty headed, way-out-of-their depth little shysters like Pelosi and Reed can possibly improve the efficiency of the healthcare system — such a notion is so laughably implausible that only the very best prevaricators on the planet — like our Liar-in-Chief Obama — can make such a claim with a straight face.

The healthcare “reform” bill is nothing but a massive power grab by our power-lusting president and his fellow looters in Congress — it’s just an excuse for another wholesale looting of the taxpayers to pay-off more political debts (see, for instance, the benefits to Unions in this plan) and to make more industries and individuals vulnerable to future governmental extortions.

And adding insult to injury, these damn cowards don’t even have the guts to make their plans effective immediately — instead, they schedule the physician enslaving and taxpayer looting to begin only after the next election, on the unstated premise that we the people are too stupid to understand who has done what to us.

But here, I think, they miscalculate. Americans are sick of these shenanigans, just as they are sick of being told that anyone who opposes the government’s plan to put a noose around every neck is a racists. Americans are not ready to surrender the last of their freedoms and quietly submit as the Democrats turn America into a fascist/socialist dictatorship — they won’t do so without a fight, and a helluva fight it’s going to be.

Does anybody know of a good resource for studies/statistics/etc on the various European healthcare schemes besides those from WHO?

Thanks

Health care is broken. Fact. Medicare is busted. Fact. Congress is a festering carbuncle on the backside of the universe fact. But until we all can talk about this instead of screech expletive deleteds at each other nothing is going to change.

Far be it for me to interfere with your comprehensive fits (both sides of the issue). Continue…………..it doesn’t help but it’s the best entertainment for free one can find at this hour of the night.