OT: A couple of funnies from ND

[Mittens Romney]

Most of us like our government run system.

Not true, not even close to true!

https://everythingzoomer.com/health/2018/02/10/canada-ranks-lowest-health-care-satisfaction/

A new study finds that 67 percent of Canadians, 65 and over, are
satisfied with the quality of their health care. That also also means
more than a quarter of us are officially unsatisfied.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) reported that among
10 other countries (Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New
Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United
States), we ranked least satisfied.

The 2017 edition of The Commonwealth Fund’s annual International Health
Policy Survey reported a 76 per cent average satisfaction rating, with
the Swiss topping out at 84 per cent. Little surprise, Switzerland’s
high overall health rating was among the reasons it made No. 3 on the
UN’s best countries to live list in 2017. (Canada came in at 10th best,
incidentally, with education achievement being our distinction.)

As for the issues that may have cost us that 33 per cent on the Health
Policy Survey, here are some of the findings:

3 out of 5 Canadians reported waiting at least four weeks to see a
specialist – highest among the 11 countries surveyed

12 per cent said test results were unavailable at follow-up
appointments, and 11 per cent had received conflicting information from
different health care providers

One quarter of respondents did not have someone review the purpose of
each of their medications

1 out of 5 did not receive written information on what to do after
hospital discharge or did not have follow-up care arranged

https://www.fraserinstitute.org/blogs/survey-reveals-canadian-health-care-concerns

Canada has one of the most expensive universal health-care systems in
the world. In 2016, on an age-adjusted basis, Canada ranked fourth
highest for health-care expenditure as a percentage of GDP and 10th
highest for health-care expenditure per capita. Further, health care is
the single largest budget item in every province. Of course, high levels
of spending are not necessarily a bad thing if they are accompanied by
commensurate results. Unfortunately for Canadians, that simply isn’t true.

For example, in 2016 Canada had the second-lowest
physician-to-population ratio (ranking 26th out of 28), fewer MRI and CT
scanners than the average (rank 22 and 21 out of 27, respectively) and
the second-lowest number of beds per thousand (ranking 25 out of 26).

Things look even worse when we examine wait times data. Of the 10
countries with available data, Canada ranked worst (10th out of 10) for
the percentage of patients who reported waiting two months or more for a
specialist appointment, and worst (10th out of 10) for the percentage of
patients who reported waiting four months or more for elective surgery.

Finally, the majority of survey respondents reported worrying a lot
about long wait times (62 per cent), the shortage of health
professionals (60 per cent) and crowded hospitals (59 per cent).

[Mittens Romney]

I know that we are paying for it with our taxes but the difference
in taxes would not cove most people's medical insurance and there
are no deductions or deductibles.

What may not be obvious in the US system is the *HUGE* hidden cost
of accounting built-in to commercial health insurance.

https://everythingzoomer.com/health/2018/02/10/canada-ranks-lowest-health-care-satisfaction/

A new study finds that 67 percent of Canadians, 65 and over, are
satisfied with the quality of their health care. That also also means
more than a quarter of us are officially unsatisfied.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) reported that among
10 other countries (Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New
Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United
States), we ranked least satisfied.

The 2017 edition of The Commonwealth Fund’s annual International Health
Policy Survey reported a 76 per cent average satisfaction rating, with
the Swiss topping out at 84 per cent. Little surprise, Switzerland’s
high overall health rating was among the reasons it made No. 3 on the
UN’s best countries to live list in 2017. (Canada came in at 10th best,
incidentally, with education achievement being our distinction.)

As for the issues that may have cost us that 33 per cent on the Health
Policy Survey, here are some of the findings:

3 out of 5 Canadians reported waiting at least four weeks to see a
specialist – highest among the 11 countries surveyed

12 per cent said test results were unavailable at follow-up
appointments, and 11 per cent had received conflicting information from
different health care providers

One quarter of respondents did not have someone review the purpose of
each of their medications

1 out of 5 did not receive written information on what to do after
hospital discharge or did not have follow-up care arranged

https://www.fraserinstitute.org/blogs/survey-reveals-canadian-health-care-concerns

Canada has one of the most expensive universal health-care systems in
the world. In 2016, on an age-adjusted basis, Canada ranked fourth
highest for health-care expenditure as a percentage of GDP and 10th
highest for health-care expenditure per capita. Further, health care is
the single largest budget item in every province. Of course, high levels
of spending are not necessarily a bad thing if they are accompanied by
commensurate results. Unfortunately for Canadians, that simply isn’t true.

For example, in 2016 Canada had the second-lowest
physician-to-population ratio (ranking 26th out of 28), fewer MRI and CT
scanners than the average (rank 22 and 21 out of 27, respectively) and
the second-lowest number of beds per thousand (ranking 25 out of 26).

Things look even worse when we examine wait times data. Of the 10
countries with available data, Canada ranked worst (10th out of 10) for
the percentage of patients who reported waiting two months or more for a
specialist appointment, and worst (10th out of 10) for the percentage of
patients who reported waiting four months or more for elective surgery.

Finally, the majority of survey respondents reported worrying a lot
about long wait times (62 per cent), the shortage of health
professionals (60 per cent) and crowded hospitals (59 per cent).

[Mittens Romney]

There is a good reason that politics tend to be polarized.

https://everythingzoomer.com/health/2018/02/10/canada-ranks-lowest-health-care-satisfaction/

A new study finds that 67 percent of Canadians, 65 and over, are
satisfied with the quality of their health care. That also also means
more than a quarter of us are officially unsatisfied.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) reported that among
10 other countries (Australia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New
Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United
States), we ranked least satisfied.

The 2017 edition of The Commonwealth Fund’s annual International Health
Policy Survey reported a 76 per cent average satisfaction rating, with
the Swiss topping out at 84 per cent. Little surprise, Switzerland’s
high overall health rating was among the reasons it made No. 3 on the
UN’s best countries to live list in 2017. (Canada came in at 10th best,
incidentally, with education achievement being our distinction.)

As for the issues that may have cost us that 33 per cent on the Health
Policy Survey, here are some of the findings:

3 out of 5 Canadians reported waiting at least four weeks to see a
specialist – highest among the 11 countries surveyed

12 per cent said test results were unavailable at follow-up
appointments, and 11 per cent had received conflicting information from
different health care providers

One quarter of respondents did not have someone review the purpose of
each of their medications

1 out of 5 did not receive written information on what to do after
hospital discharge or did not have follow-up care arranged

https://www.fraserinstitute.org/blogs/survey-reveals-canadian-health-care-concerns

Canada has one of the most expensive universal health-care systems in
the world. In 2016, on an age-adjusted basis, Canada ranked fourth
highest for health-care expenditure as a percentage of GDP and 10th
highest for health-care expenditure per capita. Further, health care is
the single largest budget item in every province. Of course, high levels
of spending are not necessarily a bad thing if they are accompanied by
commensurate results. Unfortunately for Canadians, that simply isn’t true.

For example, in 2016 Canada had the second-lowest
physician-to-population ratio (ranking 26th out of 28), fewer MRI and CT
scanners than the average (rank 22 and 21 out of 27, respectively) and
the second-lowest number of beds per thousand (ranking 25 out of 26).

Things look even worse when we examine wait times data. Of the 10
countries with available data, Canada ranked worst (10th out of 10) for
the percentage of patients who reported waiting two months or more for a
specialist appointment, and worst (10th out of 10) for the percentage of
patients who reported waiting four months or more for elective surgery.

Finally, the majority of survey respondents reported worrying a lot
about long wait times (62 per cent), the shortage of health
professionals (60 per cent) and crowded hospitals (59 per cent).

[Hiram Panguitch]

Also taxes; fixed 10% (like God said in the Bible) and lay off
the entire tax/porkbarrel/fraud department.

Brilliant.

But will those revenues fund your socialism fully?

[Hiram Panguitch]

Australian healthcare's a crazy mess financially. The last time I was
in hospital, they sent me a bill for $6000 ($4000 American)
afterwards, even though we have private health insurance. They should
copy what the UK and other European countries do

England's NHS is in fatal disrepair.

You must be bereft of any grasp on reality.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/03/world/europe/uk-national-health-service.html

https://qz.com/1201096/by-deifying-the-nhs-the-uk-will-never-fix-its-broken-health-care-system

https://lowdownnhs.info/analysis/simon-stevens-five-years-of-failure-that-have-plunged-nhs-into-growing-chaos/