For a dozen years now I've led a dual life, spending more than 90 percent of my time and money in the U.S. while receiving 90 percent of my health care in my wife's native France.

SUCKERS!

#1 in the world.

to get a feel for just how good it is watch "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly". Now that's a real health care system.

You blinked.

Wiki from the Diving Bell and the Butterfly:

The book took about 200,000 blinks to write and an average word took approximately two minutes.

I'll have to see if the library has it. Fascinating.

The lines are short because half of France is still waiting for the Allies to liberate them.

I've now reached the age where I will better appreciate the premium skill level of American doctors and their high-quality equipment and techniques. And in a very real way my family has voted with its feet when it comes to choosing between the two countries. One of France's worst problems is the rigidity and expense that comes with an extensive welfare state.

He brings it to a close with an intelligent statement.

Reason Editor Prefers French Health Care

The little tiny short skirts their nurses wear?

The book took about 200,000 blinks to write...

I'll keep an eye out for it

Let's see... the equipment, the techniques, and the quality of doctors are all better in the US... but you have to pay for some of the expenses yourself.

I guess that is the basic argument. Bad service for everyone (that can't afford to travel to someplace like the US for service) or a mixed bag, with some getting crappy service, some getting OK service, and others getting good service.

For most people, guess it depends on if you are one of the poor people getting crappy service, hoping for something that is just bad, or someone getting good service and fearing for your life when your service becomes bad. Those who currently get OK service here are mostly just concerned about any change... trying to figure out which of the liars in Congress you are supposed to believe.

It doesn't have to be "bad" It might turn out to be a baseline of OK for everybody. I have what they call a Cadillac plan from the union but I will settle for OK.

The lines for care in other countries are shorter because there are no rabid trial lawyers in hot pursuit of every medical decision, no gangbangers with gun and knife wounds, no bimbos lined up for abortions, no druggies overdosed and unresponsive, no lard asses lined up for liposuction, no morbidly obese slobs with chest pains and all on welfare so the care is FREE. Duh! Why don't we export a contingent of MS 13 or some bloods and crips to those countries or maybe some of our 25 million illegals with third world diseases and see how great their health care becomes overnight?

"One of France's worst problems is the rigidity and expense that comes with an extensive welfare state."

They still spend a much smaller portion of GDP than does the US so it the French spend too much then we are just plain wasteful.

I have what they call a Cadillac plan from the union but I will settle for OK.

#10 | Posted by jackass

Let us know when you have a cancer that can definitely be cured if you get the Cadillac treatment but only a maybe if you settle for just OK.

A good example would be prostate cancer that can be treated immediately with expensive robotic surgery vs. we'll just observe it for 6 months and see if there's any increase in your PSA levels.

If Princess Dianna had the car wreck in the US she would be alive today.

The French system is to try and treat the victim where they are and the US system is to Grab and Run...stablizing the victim until they can get somewhere that has everything needed to treat the person.

I will take the US.

Hahahahaha. A socialist is a right-libertarian who gets mugged by reality.

I emailed Mr Welch at Reason (of which I subscribe to) and this is the reply he sent me:

If you read the whole column, you might note that I say explicitly that I "oppose" Obamacare. Also, if you read the whole issue, you'll see a more robust collection of anti-Obamacare offerings than whatever the Heritage Foundation did this month.

Best,
Matt

I was happy he actually responded to my email and in such a timely manner.

Let us know when you have a cancer that can definitely be cured if you get the Cadillac treatment but only a maybe if you settle for just OK.

A good example would be prostate cancer that can be treated immediately with expensive robotic surgery vs. we'll just observe it for 6 months and see if there's any increase in your PSA levels.

#13 | Posted by Redman

Do you mean like the coverage (or lack of) that most Americans already have, because they can't afford a Cadillac plan? So, universal coverage is BAD because less people might have Cadillac plans? That's idiotic!

France also pays it's doctors about $55,000 per year. The typical starting wage for a US doctor right out of medical school in the US is $175,000, although specialist may start as high as $300,000. College debt generally runs at about $175,000.

In addtion, the EU spends far, far less per person on medical research than the US, does, while taking full benefit of the rewards of that research.

#14 | Posted by foshaffer at 2009-12-17 10:42 AM | Reply | Flag: Full of shit

Whatsleft -- please, one link/example where a person was diagnosed with cancer and not treated due to lack of insurance. I know plenty of people that have insurance but do not get checkups, but I have never seen a person turned away in the US and left to die. Neither have you I suspect.

Whatsleft - Really ...Are you sure I am Full of Shit?

"The typical starting wage for a US doctor right out of medical school in the US is $175,000"

I'd ask for a link, but 30 seconds on "the Google" was all it took for me to realize you don't know what you're talking about.

#20 | Posted by FrankA

#21 | Posted by foshaffer

While it may or may not be, true that she would have lived if the crash had occurred in the U.S., your statement and your links are still pure speculation.

She also might have lived had she been wearing a seatbelt.

She also might have lived had the driver not been impaired and had been doing the speed limit at the time of impact.

As I recall, two people died instantly in that crash. Whatever else may have changed the outcome can be construed as speculation for political viewpoint.

Statistics still demonstrate that the French healthcare system is better than ours in many, if not most, ways.

In addtion, the EU spends far, far less per person on medical research than the US, does, while taking full benefit of the rewards of that research.

#18 | Posted by madbomber

If that's the major reason why healthcare is less expensive in other countries, I would suggest that we should find some way to get other countries to shoulder much more of the burden for said research. We in the U.S. can no longer afford to do all of the research for the rest of the world. Why should we subsidize this research with our medical bills and insurance premiums, while the rest of the world gets the cheap benefits?

The over-all quality of our healthcare is only a minor issue compared to the cost. Quality is a nice feature. Should a large # of people go bankrupt to save their own lives?

well then by all means move to france ya mo fo

I'd rather try to fix what's wrong in the U.S.,

ya a ho

"If that's the major reason why healthcare is less expensive in other countries, I would suggest that we should find some way to get other countries to shoulder much more of the burden for said research."

There have been several attempts to do just that, primarily by forcing drug companies to charge the same price to everyone, regardless of income. For americans, that would largelty result in lower drug costs. The downside is that the same companies could no longer provide low or no cost drugs to the developing world.

"Why should we subsidize this research with our medical bills and insurance premiums, while the rest of the world gets the cheap benefits?"

Well, using that same argument, why should the healthy people of the US have to support the unhealthy lifestyles of others through higher premiums. The current plan, if passed, would require healthy young people to pay much higher premiums, so that the less healthy and older folks could pay lower premiums. When I was a 23 year old college student, I paid about $85 a month for a decent plan. Because I'm young and healthy. If Obamacare goes through, that would no longer be possible. I would pay more so that others could pay less.

"The over-all quality of our healthcare is only a minor issue compared to the cost. Quality is a nice feature."

The only differences between healthcare today in the US and healthcare in 1700 are cost and quality. It was much cheaper in 1700. Much lower quality too.

It's really a conundrum that can't be overcome. You can't really sacrifice quality for the few to save on cost without sacrficing on quality for all. For example, the wait time for an MRI in Canada is two weeks. The wait in the US is the amount of time it takes for the doc to determine you need an MRI. We simply have a more robust infrastructure down here. It also costs more.

Maybe the answer is to create different healthcare tiers based on cost/quality. Have lower cost hospitals with less available resources for those that are willing to accept lower quality for less cost, while at the same time having better equipped hospitals for those that are willing to pay extra. I think that this may be what would happen if it were left up to the markets, but the minute that someone at a low cost hospital was denied treatment that they would have recieved at a more expensive facility, someone would step in and claim that they were unfairly denied the service. Even though someone else was willing to pay for it while they themselves were not. This has actually happened in Canada, where doctors have been told they can not give preferential treatment to that patients willing to pay more...they are basically forced to provide their services at lower than market rate.

The wait in the US is the amount of time it takes for the doc to determine you need an MRI.

Provided you have the means and/or insurance to pay for it.

Maybe the answer is to create different healthcare tiers based on cost/quality.

That's essentially what the French have already done.

"Provided you have the means and/or insurance to pay for it."

Isn't that the same as virtually every good or service we utilize?

The lines for care in other countries are shorter because there are no rabid trial lawyers in hot pursuit of every medical decision, no gangbangers with gun and knife wounds, no bimbos lined up for abortions, no druggies overdosed and unresponsive, no lard asses lined up for liposuction, no morbidly obese slobs with chest pains and all on welfare so the care is FREE. Duh! Why don't we export a contingent of MS 13 or some bloods and crips to those countries or maybe some of our 25 million illegals with third world diseases and see how great their health care becomes overnight?

#11 | Posted by bumpkin44

And there in lays the problem

France has 200k illegals the U.S has 20million

"The lines for care in other countries are shorter because there are no rabid trial lawyers in hot pursuit of every medical decision, no gangbangers with gun and knife wounds, no bimbos lined up for abortions, no druggies overdosed and unresponsive, no lard asses lined up for liposuction, no morbidly obese slobs with chest pains and all on welfare so the care is FREE. Duh! Why don't we export a contingent of MS 13 or some bloods and crips to those countries or maybe some of our 25 million illegals with third world diseases and see how great their health care becomes overnight?"

Actually, I would contend that France has an abundance of all of those. When it comes to hooligans and gangbangers, France is up there. Most are North African immigrants who believe that they are owed something. Remember several years ago when those two North African kids got electrocuted while running from the cops? The result was mass rioting in the banleiues, with hundreds of cars being burned each night. And this is not uncommon. When people take to the streets in France, the results are often violent. Angry Muslim youths, militant socialists, none have much respect for those around them

"Provided you have the means and/or insurance to pay for it."

Isn't that the same as virtually every good or service we utilize?

#31 | Posted by madbomber

The point is that you might have to wait for an MRI in some countries, but if you are really in need of an MRI then you can still get one.

I also have no problem with moving people to the front of the line who are willing to pay more to have their service expedited, such as happens in many countries with universal care. Funny thing is that I doubt if most of the people who would pay for expedited service really NEED it.