Jonsey anonymous whoever you are…I think Susan is way closer to the reality of Europe than you are, plus she I believe is Italian, so is European rather than British. (that is not an insult so please don’t be insulted, but you’ve got to know what I mean having lived elsewhere on the Continent) I lowly être que je suis, am an American. You are ignoring the serious problems because of the muslims, isalmists that you know personally.
Oh and mea culpa, I wasn’t very clear about the equivalant sums of money involved…what personal health care insurance costs as choice factor and the imposed tax that my husband must pay are pretty much equal. Even more so when you take those sums as a percentage of earned income and add onto the fact now in France to have mostly free health care, as not all medications, treatments, and visits are covered, you must also buy a complementary health insurance. This is voluntary, but the government healthcare only covers 65% of your medical costs and your private coverage picks up the rest, if you read the different offers correctly and are willing to pay(nearly an extra third of the government’s charge, and that goes up every year)…this a newer twist on the system, and it keeps changing as no matter how they try to fix the deficit in the healthcare budget, it just keeps getting worse.
On your other points sir, it doesn’t get added to our insurance premiums it gets added to our taxes I believe (help someone I’ve lost track on that point being here in France for 15 years), as the insurance companies and hospitals are not the same…I think there are some monies from Medicare to the hospitals for this, but I do believe that it local taxes that pay these costs, or it is the prices paid by people who have to pay out of pocket their medical care because they don’t qualify for the free care and aren’t covered by their employer, or can’t get coverage for pre-existing conditions. The insurance companies do not pay the same prices as they are able to negotiate lower payments at teh hospital…these payments also get passed on to the out of pocket people…plus let’s just touch on the legal system in the US effect on the cost of medical care, which really does not exist in france as it is very very difficult to sue a doctor or a hospital for malpractice, and from what I have heard it isn’t much easier in the UK…
Finally, yes the US spends huge sums of money to cover only a small percentage in Medicare, Medicaid, because healthcar in the US is of a better quality, although I believe that may be coming into question now, as the prices go up and the coverages get less and less…therefore it is more expensive…and I unlike your lists of where you have lived, have lived in both the US and France so I think I know a little bit, and I mean a little bit of what I am talking about…if I do need to know more, I can get that knowledge from family and friends in both places, it would be fun to discuss the pros and cons of both systems but I am tired have to work and so am heading off to bed. Susan thank you for having such a great spirit, I don’t know you but really relate to you from your posts, wish you lived nearer to me just so it wouldn’t be so lonely..
Proud elitist, please realize from the lack of right wing media buffs running into court today screaming it’s unfair it’s unfair and making the US into the laughing stock of the world for our cheating democratic system…that maybe alot of us right wingers actually are gracious losers and are only here crying amoungst ourselves, and that you elitist, are butting in? Plus, we aren’t suffering yet, you are still, Mr Bush is still our President until January, k? And even he is a better loser than his hick predecessor…and I don’t care if I spelled tha twrong sound it out and you may understand good night.
