Thank you for this video. I think what most people forget is in the UK you can still pay for private healthcare but if you can't afford that the NHS is there for you. My Dad passed away a few months ago and he was given the absolute best treatment and care through the NHS. I can't speak for anyone else but I believe the NHS is one of the greatest examples of our society and should be treated as such.
Hi Joel & Lia! Thank you very much for supporting the NHS. As a nurse working for the NHS for the last 7 years, I’m very proud that I’m working for the NHS especially given the pandemic. A lot of my colleagues have made an enormous amount of sacrifice for the British public. You and Lia showing your appreciation and support is wonderful and so sweet. Thank you very much.
I think that possibly the most frustrating thing about American healthcare is that you have to pay doctors to tell you that you're not sick. If I have a sore throat, work will tell me that I MUST bring a doctor's note before I can return. I am uninsured, so I would go to a walk-in clinic and wait a few hours to see a physician. The visit probably costs $260. They need to do a swab test for strep throat, another $80. Swab comes back negative, doc tells me I have a bad chest cold and to sleep it off. $340 to tell me I have a cold. Thanks, government.
The problem in the US with voting is that the majority of those who vote all the time or most of the time are the ones who benefit from nothing ever being changed for the better in the US. The progressive side in the US will only vote very often when they "feel motivated". Maybe the horror that is Trump will do it once, but it won't last long if history is any indication. Contrary to what Trump says, the system is rigged against anyone who isn't white, straight, rich, male, religious, and cisgender now.
I'm in Australia and a new doctors clinic has opened up at the end of my street which is so convenient but best of all it is a Bulk Billing Clinic which means I pay nothing for each visit. I get all narky if I have to pay $30 AUD as a co pay so I could not imagine spending $340 just for a doctor's note or swab test for strep throat ever.
I work within the NHS and it is honestly the most amazing thing. Once you are working in the Nhs, you are looked after. You get pensions and regular training that is funded for you so you can offer the best service possible. I started off as an apprentice in a GP practice on the reception desk but now I have a business diploma and I am now a qualified pharmacy technician too. There are so many opportunities in the NHS and I am so so greatful to be a part of it. Guaranteed there will be something you enjoy doing whether it's nursing, pharmaceuticals, admin, IT... the list goes on. More people should be applying for jobs in the NHS. It's just amazing. Although prescriptions are £8.60 per item (which does go up 20p every April), it is a small price to pay for your health care. There is also a pre-payment prescription service where you can pay a monthly fee for those who have regular repeat prescriptions and have more than one item on prescription. For example, instead of paying £17.20 every month for two items on prescription (which would work out at about £200 a year) you can pay a monthly fee which would amount to £105 over the year, so you will be saving money. Also, if you have a lifelong illness like Diabetes or hyperthyroidism, you get a medical exemption, meaning you have free prescriptions also. So, a medication could cost the pharmacy (or dispensary) hundreds of pounds to order in for a patient who would only have to pay £8.60 for it, providing that they have no exemptions. This is just one area that nhs is amazing in.
You are not, obviously, a doctor. I know quite a few junior doctors who migrated from the UK to Australia because of a cut in pay. Do you remember the strike of a few years ago?
Christian Libertarian That was a strike protesting a horrible contract the Health Secretary was trying to impose on junior doctors. They were striking because it would've made their jobs harder and would've put many patients at increased risk.
Benjamin--Yes, this is exactly what they said. So they voted with their feet and went to Australia. I do not wish to imply that anyone at NHS has evil intent. From what I have gathered from their Australian-bound cast-offs, they are an extremely dedicated group, a pretty knowledgeable about medicine. But the funding constraints are real, and that constraint is imposed by the very nature of socialized medicine. They make due with what they have. The result is second class medical care.
@@christianlibertarian5488 The funding restraints only come from the Conservatives in power who have ALWAYS slashed spending on health not just in the UK, but here in OZ too & no doubt others like Canada. They can't help themselves. They're only interested in serving the corporations, the wealthy and the elite. That's who they've always been. They aren't interested in the average Joe other than to squeeze them dry by selling anything public to private purely for profit. They are a hindrance and a danger to the future of western society cohesion and as usual will be called out every time for their lack of everything from compassion to their lack of a shared community ideal. They will always try to take anything that's publicly owned as any group with fascist tendencies do. They are greedy, manipulative, love dog whistles & false flagging in their continuous attempts at turning the average Joe against each other, with the intent of removing the focus off them and their elitist, corrupt comrades. It'd be worse in the UK because of it's centuries history of the dividing of the heirarchy/royalty & the workers. Same as the US but without the royalty. (Even though they treat their presidents as though they are royalty which is weird as they fought a war of independence from a monarchy). Australia, Canada & New Zealand (3 of the biggest former colonies) aren't like that. They are way more egalitarian in their ideas of a just society in comparison. They have their issues with greedy politicians and corporations trying to get more of the pie, but there is no institutionalized elitism like the two former. The only way that ANYTHING helpful to society, be it health, education and other social programs gets done and continues to be successful, is when progressives/ the Left side of politics does it. Time and time again it's been proven. Without the progressive left, there would be no unionism or collective bargaining (including wages that are deserved), no higher education for EVERYONE, no healthcare (preventative, emergency & after care) for EVERYONE, no chance to start and keep running a small business, no laws to protect the weak, vulnerable and an overall fairness doctrine in regards to anti business, anti minority of any persuasion, anti environment & even the importance of the power to protest with a collective or alone without unjust consequence.(That's exactly what's happening in the US today, trying to make protest an illegal act, even against a foreign country like Israel, otherwise known as the BDS movement). Conservatives (and the Right Wing in general), aren't interested in an egalitarian society. Never have been and never will and there will always be someone who stands in their way with their attempts to "own" the rest of us with their greed, corruption & disdain for "truth & justice (& the American Way)" [that's a joke by the way].
@@Rage_Harder_Then_Relax The funding constraints are not coming from Conservatives. They are coming from reality. Medical care is an infinite sink hole for money, as the US seems intent on proving. If you tried to fill every demand/request for health care, every penny of GDP would be spent on it. If government is footing the bill, government will have to restrain spending. If private individuals are footing their own costs, they will be forced to constrain their own spending. There is no other option.
Great video. I work for NHS up here in Newcastle. I feel proud of our system but as an insider the funding is not good enough for the amount of work we do!
Absolutely amazing job guys! Well done! The NHS is really helpful overall. Having lived in London I certainly understand the benefits. I loved your sensitive and informative effort. Keep up the great work! Stay safe and well! Thanks! Love and cheers! 👍💗😘🇬🇧
Nurses no longer get a bursary, anyone starting a nursing course in England had to get a student loan as of August, hence the drop in people applying to be nurses.
That's why Scotland is streets ahead in terms of incentives for young medical students. What is the benefit of that? Well a certain % will stay as they enjoy the lifestyle, also if an epidemic happened in Scotland like..(Ebola) people would be more inclined to help with said qualifications.
I wish the US had something like the NHS. We do pay taxes for healthcare that provides for the elderly (Medicare) and low income (Medicaid). I'm on Medicaid since I work part time. But I've been with and without private insurance. It is scary that when I'm sick and can't afford to go you just wait it off. I feel it is inhumane to treat people like that. I went to England and worked with a disabled person. This person had home health nurses come in and was covered by NHS. In the US insurance would only pay a portion and some would have to pay out of pocket. I hope one day we would have universal health care. xx
That's so sad. I hope it will change in the US. It's something we've always grown up with, and sadly we just *expect* free healthcare, it was only recently that we realised just how lucky we are.
British English with Joel & Lia. Thanks. I know people have harder but it gets me angry when people have to think do i pay for my bills or go to hospital.
That's cool. I am originally from California. I live in Indiana a very conservative state but live near Chicago. I remember my state fought hard against "Obamacare". I still have to pay a small fee. But hopefully our healthcare gets resolved soon.
Get yourself an NHS! You don't pay health insurance premiums/deductibles anymore. You pay higher taxes instead. (on balance - you pay WAY WAY LESS!! - to the tune of 50%) You relax a bit more - knowing that a doctor's visit is free if you're worried about something that's happening to your body. Honestly - not worrying about what could happen to your financial situation if you visit the doctor is arguably the best thing about universal healthcare. The mental healthcare benefit is massive.
🎉🎈🎆!!!20000!!!🎆🎈🎉 20k+ subscribers guys! So amazing! Your hard work really pays off. My students are delighted with your channel. And so am I. Thanks so much for everything you do. Love and cheers! 👍👍🙌💗😘🏆🇬🇧
big thanks to you guys for this video! 😊 I'm studying medicine and I want to move to the UK and work there as a GP once I'm older, so it was really interesting to hear about how people live with the NHS and how things work. x
You did get the part about the pay being so low that you will probably end up moonlighting in order to make a decent living and them having to bribe people to go into the medical professions there?
Hey guys! I don’t know how many people live in England, but there are about 375 million of us which would make it exceedingly expensive to pay for everyone’s medical costs. We have Medicare for those over 65 and Medicaid for the “poor” and children. I would much rather pay a monthly premium than have my taxes go way up to pay for mine and everyone else’s health care. It’s a difficult discussion now days because there is so much political and economic divide involved when it comes to trying to find a workable solution.
Congratulations for your nice video, it is very clear and informative. In Italy we have a similar system, our health care is paid from our taxes and it is completely free for everybody, if someone is jobless they can have medical and hospital treatment for free as well. I had a heart attack 19 years ago and I was hospitalised for two weeks. I didn't pay a penny neither for the hospital treatment nor for my rehab period. All this in the USA would have cost me a fortune!
@@maryprather696 In the UK, if you go off work through stress or any other mental illness your employer cannot sack/fire you because losing your job may make you suicidal and the company could be found partly responsible for your demise, so your employment is protected at least whilst you're away from work.
I was already a little bit familiar with England's NHS system after watching the Michael Moore movie "Sicko" In this movie, he spoke with a woman who was VERY pregnant and she was saying that she was going to be able to get 6 months off paid and an extra 6 months off unpaid for maternity leave, so she could take an entire year off for maternity leave Women in the US would be lucky to get a month off for maternity leave In addition, Michael Moore also had spoken to a pharmacist in England asking him about the prescriptions if he had a prescription for a 30 day supply of a medication how much it would cost, which at that time it was £6.65 ( $10.00 USD) regardless of what the medication was used to treat or even the amount in the prescription and also the fact that anyone under 16 or over 60 would get their medication for free And then there's another scene where he was talking with a doctor who worked in an NHS hospital as a general practice doctor who had told him that he lives in a home that is worth a million dollars USD, he drives an Audi to work and also told him about this system that had, at that time, just been put into effect stating that any doctors that got More of their patients to do something to improve their health than their colleagues would get a pay raise Whereas here in the US, the doctor who denied treatment for more patients than their colleagues would get a pay raise After having watched that movie, it made me consider immigrating to England
I live in the US and I have heard so many times that people just won't go to the doctor because they can't afford it. They won't even take medication because they can't afford to buy it. I've had friends who were seriously ill and they won't go! On of my friends had an allergic reation and she basically just took an antihistamine and hoped for the best. She ended up having to be rushed to the ER.
I can't say if schasse2011 is telling the truth, but I know my parents neighbor, who I knew since I was a little kid, committed suicide around a week before Christmas last year because she wasn't going to be able to pay for medical treatment. She lost her job in 2017 and needed work on her leg, hip or knee, not sure of the details. She wouldn't be able to afford it and the care she would need afterward. So she took her life. That's healthcare in the US for the masses.
@pmts pmts This is all true. The maker of Epinephrine, which counter acts allergic reaction charges $1000.00 for someone with severe anaphylactic allergies to get one Epi Pen. That is one dose. The Epi Pen cost $5 to make, but because of high deductibles parent are paying for this because it is a necessity. People die from one bite of peanut butter or one bee sting if they are allergic. The pharmaceutical companies are taking advantage of us because they can. I work for an Allergy & Asthma Group. I started working as a nurse but now I do all the billing/coding.
Come to Scotland it's even better , no charge for prescriptions or University education , that is something those English people forget to mention when making those videos about UK !!
Very informative! Thank you guys for sharing this video. The NHS is truly very different than healthcare in the U.S. It is very expensive here and so many people don't get treatment they need due to high costs. Thanks guys, all your videos are brilliant!
I live in the US, and our health care system is pretty complicated. there is no one answer for everyone. what you pay and how you pay is very dependent on your circumstances. Even in my career of less than 15 years, my insurance has changed quite a bit. When I first started working, my employer paid everything. It was a benefit to working there, and I paid none of the premiums. The only time you would pay anything would be a co-payment to see a doctor, in my case $20. For prescriptions, or a few hundred for a surgery or emergency. Now, more than ever, companies are paying less of that bill than they used to. Finding a job in which you contribute $0 towards insurance premiums are few and far between. Right now, my employer pays 50% of my premiums and I pay 50%. It comes out of my paycheck before taxes. There were times when i had to purchase my own insurance. People that make decent money don't qualify for subsidies from the government, so they are at the mercy of market prices. I had an aunt paying $1,200/month for a family of three with a $10,000 deductible. The current system works well if you're poor or you are well insured through your job. What makes private insurance cheaper through an employer is the size of the group of people being covered. When you're not part of an insurance pool, and you're out there on your own just trying to buy the product, it's very expensive, which is why people opt to forego purchasing insurance. I could go on and on. But I enjoyed the video and the perspective.
VThokie--You have hit on one of the major issues in US healthcare. Obamacare made the situation much worse. Prices went up due to mandates, and high deductible plans became the norm because of the tax structure. The situation could be improved dramatically if the government would allow Health Savings Accounts to be used to purchase health insurance, and raised the amount that could be put into Health Savings Accounts, and letting community groups buy insurance. Rand Paul and the Freedom Coalition specifically proposed exactly this. The Democrats fought very hard against it, as did the Republicans in the pocket of insurance companies. One thing you *must* do is start putting money into a Health Savings Account. It is tax free, and is your money. It will grow depending on how you invest it. The Democrats limited how much you can put in, but put the max allowed. Over time, you will be your own insurance company, and will never have to worry about health care costs.
I lost my home due to a medical bankruptcy. I was in icu for a month and had half a million dollars in bills. I had no insurance due to a job loss. Its real here in USA and really bad.
That's horrendous! I hope you're doing better now. It's definitely a stark reminder of how lucky I am to have the NHS here in the UK. Living in Scotland even my prescriptions are free. I really hope your country reforms its healthcare system to make it free or at least affordable. Healthcare is a right not a privilege 💙
I live in Southern California, my husband’s job provides our insurance, if he were to lose his job we qualify for cobra. Yes it would cost us monthly but it would be worth it to still have insurance. Also we can always be seen, never would we be turned down if we didn’t have the money or insurance. They can bill you and monthly payments can be worked out. Or you can qualify for government welfare and they can cover it. My step-daughter was in a horrible car wreck and spent 10 days in the hospital. The hospital bill was $275,000. Insurance covered all but a co-pay of $2,000. Our daughter wrote a letter saying she’s a struggling student. They forgave the $2,000 and the hospital ended up not costing us anything out of pocket.
It is that way in some Caribbean countries as well. I can only speak for Barbados it's that way we pay heavy taxes so hospital, doctors are free. If you have to get medicine, and it is on the drug list you don't pay. If it is filled at a private pharmacy you just have to pay a dispensers fee. Even if you were to pay to go to a doctor here you can go to one for $60 .
As far as I'm concerned having a national health care system like the NHS is a really BIG sign of civilisation in a modern state. Some people would argue that even Brits - and Italians like me - do pay for their health care through taxes, and so it does make sense that Americans would rather pay for an insurance and get top-notch health care, whilst keeping taxes down. Except they're missing out on one thing that should be a pillar of modern society: solidarity. Not everyone can afford to pay for their treatment and, just like you pointed out in the video, you never know what's round the corner even if you're in safe waters financially. I have to admit the Italian health care system is not the best and surely not on a par with the British one (because of widespread corruption, Mafia interferences and other stereotypically Italian problems), but still I'm proud of it as a citizen and would never trade that in for just a bit less taxation. Great video as always guys! I'm really keen on your very down-to-earth approach to things, it really does make the viewer feel comfortable
The frustrating thing here in the US is people don't want to talk about price gouging. They talk about competition to drive down prices or finding efficiencies but the drug and insurance companies make huge sums of money from keeping things complicated and cooperating to keep prices high. And the politicians on both sides get money from the industry lobbyists for their campaigns. Then after their political life is over they become lobbyists and make millions. 40 years ago that would be illegal. Not now. We have very few representatives who actually represent us. A friend of mine her insurance company paid $400 for a blood glucose monitor that I found on Amazon for $35. Politicians convinced people the Idea of any kind of regulation is a horrible idea of government intrusion. This is giving corporations a free ride to do anything they want.
I’m in the UK and when I was 4, I had 3 surgeries done privately (tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy and endoscopic sinus surgery)- collectively, the surgeries, hospital stay, medicines etc cost just over £10,000. Just to give you an idea on how much healthcare costs in the UK if not done through the NHS.
The major reason for individual bankruptcies in the US are medical bills. In theory and in writing in the US you have rights, but in practice, in the US nothing is a right, your very existence is a privilege.
My god I’m so jealous of this. I tore my ACL about 7 years ago and still have never gotten fixed because I can’t afford the surgery or not working for 1-3 months
Damn ACL? It hurts. The non regulated out of pocket price for ACL surgery in Prague should be like $3000. You have to expect some extra for a rehabilitation. They don't like people to jump back to plain just after the surgery as there is a high risk of thrombosis. But even 7.5 grands (incl. plane, transport, rehab, lotta beer, rehab again) should be much less than you can expect in America. Check this out bit.ly/2oN6Z1M ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-V2ArwQMvFvU.html I'm not affiliate just an ACL reconstruction survivor :)
marusak72 the biggest part of why I can’t do it is the time off from work, now a days, or at least for now, insurance companies can’t deny covering preexisting conditions. So I could probably pay my share of the surgery and rehab but being off work for months would mean I would lose my house and car.
If you have insurance in the USA you normally wouldn’t have to pay too much like my family has a max out of pocket of $4600 and then everything is covered 100%
American Health insurance is nothing but scam. They will say that they will not pay for medical bills if the patient has one of preexisting conditions mentioned in their list. On the top of that, there is deductibles as well.
The American system is completely crazy, eye watering bills just cos you got sick or had an accident. It’s about time Americans stopped being hoodwinked and being brainwashed into thinking that a National Health Service (NHS) is some sort of Russian communist thing and implemented it. I pay a few percent more tax than you do and I could have millions of Pounds worth of hospital treatment and I wouldn’t pay a single penny. How’s that for you? That’s right- the hospital sends the government the bill not me, even if I’ve never paid a penny tax I still will never see a bill. Medical bills, insurance, co pays and deductibles aren’t a thing here, neither is bankruptcy due to medical bills. I move jobs according to wether I want that job or not, salary, location etc, we never consider a job based on health benefits...ever! Wake up America.
I wish there was a way to dialogue directly to Joel and Lia. I would love to tell them how much my healthcare is costing me. Not to mention how differently the hospitals treat you, if you don't have insurance. I was in the hospital after I stopped breathing, and for some reason, the hospital staff was under the impression that I had insurance. They admitted me. Ran all kinds of tests to find out all this stuff that was wrong and had more tests they were going to do. Then they found out that we didn't have insurance. All tests were cancelled and they couldn't send me home fast enough. They gave me some meds and advised me to schedule an appointment with my family doctor, who would schedule tests and refer me to specialists for my heart and breathing issues and anything else I needed.
In America my family pays 900 us dollars a month insurance and then the insurance company only pays part of the expenses. We can't afford food so we have cancelled insurance to pay for food. Hope our six kids don't have any emergencies.
Healthcare. One of the reasons why I am glad I've been in the US Army for just over 28 years. Any ache or pain is taken care of, no issues, and no costs to me. My payback to the Army is that I am deployable for wherever they need to send me since that's a big part of what an army does. The only thing I've had to pay for over the years are some of what we call "co-payments" for some of my wife's or son's dental procedures which I've been glad to pay for. We're still struggling with universal health care in the US. I feel like we should be able to have it. When a nation is overall well off, things like health care should be taken care of. Yes, insurance companies are making a lot of $$ and it's a highly unregulated industry here. In the US, there's always the polarizing struggle of free market capitalism (where market forces dictate things) versus regulation (where the gov't steps in and makes rules). A lot of people here don't even get that distinction and the pros and cons that go with each. We Americans also have a natural distrust for the gov't that goes all the way back to when our nation was formed so there's like a 240-year-plus thread there that I find quite interesting. Glad you guys like what you've got for health care! I served in one nation in the Middle East where their national health care is really bad but people are somewhat afraid to complain about it because they're spooked by their own gov't.
Anytime an American asks me to explain the NHS i always say "It's like a military hospital. No frills, can be drab and impersonal. Production line type healthcare. But they have all the machines that go 'ping' and the Doctors are well trained".
A better way to explain it is this: healthcare is free at the point of need. Instead of the hospital or doctor sending the patient the bill, they send it to the government and in return people pay a slightly higher tax. England (Britain) is an advanced country, a technologically and economically advanced nation, at the very top of the first world along with America. We have some of the most advanced hospitals and medicine in the world just as the states does, we just don’t get billed to use it as you do, that’s it, very simple really. We have had this simple set up for over 70 years and expect treatment free of charge.
Janaina Souza London is a shithole, not representative of England at all, you want the real England? Move to one of the counties like Cambridgeshire or Norfolk
I get my prescriptions for free, because I'm epileptic. In England, Epilepsy falls under a category of "disabled" so I have a medical exemption card which I show to the pharmacist, sign the back of the form on the back at box E and sign (which states like: exempt and has shown evidence).
In the United States, your employer does not pay your entire monthly premiums. Employees must pay portions of their monthly paycheck towards the total premiums. I work for a large corporation and I pay about $100 per month towards my health coverage. I hope the Democrats will control the government and will propose a single-payer universal healthcare program in the near future. It's shameful that the richest country in the world won't provide FREE (tax payer paid) health coverage to its citizens. For decades, the powerful insurance company lobbies pad the pockets of the politician to prevent this from ever happening. The Republicans are opposed to universal healthcare because the rich don't feel that they should be responsible for the health coverage to his/her fellow Americans. It's the "every man for himself" mentality. It's sad.
It's so sad. It's just a selfish attitude from those people. Some Brits are like that too, they resent paying tax to the NHS even though it does benefit them - free doctors appointments, A&E, medication.... it's just stupid. Hopefully one day it'll change in the US.
Obamacare was not a success. People lost their doctors, it shut down insurance companies, our medical care workers hated it, premiums doubled or tripled, the website wasn't safe, and it was still expensive if you made any sort of considerable money. Obamacare was the beginning of a single payer have. The Republicans don't want a single payer because (one reason but there are many) all governments are corrupt and you are letting them have power over healthcare too. We trusted the government with money for our retirement (social security) and now that's nearly bankrupt. Do you really want someone like Bush, or Trump to dictate how the healthcare system works..... Our argument is, if you made it more capitalist, prices would naturally lower just like they do in every other aspect of capitalism. Then you would only have catastrophic insurance, to take care of the big stuff. And we could help each other when it comes to needs for the less fortunate.
"The Republicans are opposed to universal healthcare because the rich don't feel that they should be responsible for the health coverage to his/her fellow Americans. It's the "every man for himself" mentality. " - That is not true.
In Thailand, we have had the government's 30-Baht healthcare scheme for almost 20 years now. Similar to yours, it aims for equitable health care access for even the poorest people. Participants only pay for a flat fee of 30 bath (roughly 0.6 pound) for any consultation, or even absolutely free for some people who are eligible for exemption. Of course, like everything, there are pros and cons. I personally think it is very very useful and outweigh the cons.
Dear all Americans: IN BRITAIN WE HAVE PRIVATE HEALTHCARE!!! Nobody knows this, nobody mentions it. But it's true! If you want to you can BUY private health insurance. You can avoid the waiting lists. You can go to the world's best cancer specialist in your own private bed, with your own private bathroom and be waited on hand and foot by the best nurses in England. The ONLY difference is you cannot opt out of the NHS. You must also pay your national insurance subscriptions so that everybody who isn't rich enough for health insurance gets care too. You know, just like how you can't opt out of paying for the fire service. All this bullshit you hear in America about the government choosing your doctor, ending your life, rationing healthcare is complete and utter horseshit when you consider the fact you can pay to see a doctor EXACTLY as you could in America. The only difference is the paying of the national insurance to ensure your fellow citizens don't die or go bankrupt. Now tell me again about 'socialized' medicine.
Some of us know this already. Unfortunately, many other Americans are gullible to propaganda funded by the insurance companies, and the politicians that support them. Approx. $600 a month I’m paying for health insurance. My new employer is offering the same health insurance, at a lower rate, but I will still have to pay approx. $200 a month. Still have $1000 deductible, and $20 office pay, as well prescription costs. But hey, taxes are bad, paying ridiculous prices upfront are good. 🤷🏻♂️
And this is exactly why Americans do not want to have the same system. They do not see why THEY should pay for THEM. Plain and simple. I used to think I wanted to live in the USA when I was younger but when I found out about this attitude I decided I didn't.
Just to see my primary care doctor here in Virginia, USA it costs $269. My insurance pays ZERO because I never meet my deductible or out-of-pocket maximum in a calendar year. I usually get an in-network discount that cuts the price in half. If you see a primary care doctor, you must pay upfront. If you go to the emergency room, you must be treated by law before you have to pay. Emergency visits are thousands of dollars.
I don’t mean to seem ungrateful for having free healthcare but I’ve moved to the UK from Czech Republic where people don’t pay for it in their taxes but they pay insurance which is also deducted from their salary (so it’s pretty much the same thing in the end) and the level of healthcare is 100% better, which is really strange. But coming form a country where you go straight to a specialist and you’re seen on the same day it has really shocked me how hard it is here to get an appointment and solve your issue quickly. My trips to doctors here has been horrific (I had to go to the ER twice in one day because the first doctor messed up - nevermind the two uber rides worth £80). Also - no gynaecology, you go to your GP office, get seen by someone and they reffer you. No regular smear test. And I could go on and on and on. I love UK and really want to stay but the healthcare is in my opinion the worst thing about it. So I’ve decided to go private even though it’s not really in my budget :/ Just thought I’d say it in case there’s anyone thinking of moving here from Europe (despite Brexit).
that's because the Czech Republic has a population of 10.6 million with next to no population growth, the UK has 65.64 million people with a growth rate of about 1 million every 2-3 years, a massive population increase but the NHS hasn't been funded enough to cope with the increase, the school situation is the same. When I was a child in the 1990's wait times were far lower. The NHS always suffers under the conservatives.
Teavis I’ve had regular smear tests since the age of 17 or 18; I’m now 60 and still being checked so I don’t know why you haven’t. There is a national screening programme for it. There is also a national programme for breast screening.
@@masoncampbell971in some countries they don’t have GPS. If you are sick you go straight to a specialist and cut out the middleman entirely. As you don’t have gps you have more specialists
I am from South Korea and I am the one who is always criticising about things we can do better. But even me admit that Korea is one of the best countries when it comes to the national health services and health care system/facilities. It’s not for free like one in UK, but it only costs £2-3 to see a doctor(which can be said almost free) and the biggest thing is that we dont’t need to wait for a week when we are sick. I mean, ‘for free’ is great but what is the point if we have to wait for few days or weeks when we are sick. Even if that is not acute one, still for me it sounds so senseless if we have to wait for days to just see a doctor and even few weeks to get treatment while being sick or having problems. But in Korea, when you are sick, you just google hospitals(And there are so many hospitals every where at every corner), walk in and after wait for 10-15 min(depends on how many patients are visiting there but still not that many as there are so many hospitals) you can see a doctor. It’s as easy as going to hairshop to get a haircut. We need to pay for medicine at chemistry too after seeing a doctor but again it is fairly cheap(say £5-10, really depending on medicine) as it is also covered by government, in other words, our taxes. These medical costs are for free to those who registered themselves as poorest and so may cannot afford it or old people who are senior. In that way it is for free only to whom it really needs to be for free, not letting literally everyone get free medical service no matter whether they are super rich or fairly okay with making a living. Meanwhile we can still get benefit as we pay just little amount of money for medical services even though it is not absolute free. And chemistries always are located right next to hospitals which I think is so rational and right because when we are badly sick, searching for chemistries and moving to other place where chemistry is located in can be very challenging. I am now living in London, and after seeing a doctor I needed to walk for another 15 min to chemistry. I think when it is about hospital, health care, saving people’s lives, and treating sick people, things should be set up with the beat account for those sick people. Still, the reason why chemistries are always at right next to hospitals in Korea is not for these noble or humane reasons, but rather for business-wise. So, to sum up, we do pay for seeing a doctor and for medicine in Korea but it’s still very cheap(in general for most of times, under £10 in total for seeing a doctor and for medicine) and the biggest pro is that we can see a doctor right away on that day at anytime not waiting for days and weeks-all are basically walk-in. Hospitals are everywhere(And also the hospitals all have specific services each, such as one for NTE-nose throat and ear, maternity, orthopedics, internal, ophthalmology and so on.) And because hospitals are as many as restaurants, hospitals do their efforts to become better ones to get more patients by being equipped with the expensive state-of-the-art medical equipment and providing amazing medical services. For example when I hurt my big toe during surfing, I went to orthopedics(during my lunch break at work, no appointment, just visiting one of the nearest orthopedics-and didn’t forget to check the review on the internet to pick the nice hospital), and after waiting for 10 min at reception saw a doctor, got x-ray, got laser and hot pack therapy by decent machine for 30 minutes. I paid £6. I still do think UK is an amazing country and the perfectly free health service has such a great value and care towards people. But still that we cannot see a doctor right away or on that very day when we are sick is a problem that needs improvement. This is mainly due to the lack of doctors in UK. I heard many British doctors go live abroad because the pay for doctors are higher and more competitive in other countries compared to UK. I read news article few days ago saying there will be quite significant pay rise for NHS employees breaking their policy of not raising more than 1-3(?)% for NHS employees. UK needs to treat medical professionals with higher pay so that it can drive more people to become doctors or nurses. But I also heard funds for NHS is always in short for some reasons. Difficult issue. UK is one of the strongest and wealthiest countries and why does it need to lack of sufficient fund for health care? The very basic and essential sector for public welfare.
I have some experience with this. My dad is English, and I grew up in London. My mum is an American (thus I hold dual citizenship). When my mum and dad divorced she moved back to the USA. My stepdad (in the USA) keeps a health insurance policy for me even though I only visit the USA for a month or so a year. I think if you have a lot money - the US system is great. I can see most doctors within a week of calling in the USA using the insurance policy my stepfather has for me. I had my tonsils out in the USA-I saw an ‘ears, nose and throat’ surgeon on a Wednesday, and she took them out in hospital that Friday. I think the US system is efficient and fast (if you have money). HOWEVER, I realise not everyone can afford good US health insurance. If I were to choose between the two systems, I would still pick the NHS because EVERYONE gets ‘good’ healthcare with the National Service. When in England I do use my NHS GP, but I see private-sector specialists in England because my father keeps medical insurance for me through his business in England as well. Oh, Joel, for the Grandparents: if they stay in the USA for 5 years and buy their own insurance for the 5 years-when they turn 65 they can get ‘Medicare.’ Medicare is the ‘free’ healthcare for pensioners in the USA (or this is what I have been told by my mum).
Bobzeda yes medicare is at 65 (or at a disability but you have to wait 2yrs for it to start. Youre put on a program called Medicaid til then). But NOT free!! Cost currently $123@mth which is deducted out of your check before yoy even receive it. UNLESS you get special help. And the down side is allot of drs no longer want to take it because it can take anywhere from 6ms to 2yrs for them to get paid and it is ONLY what Medicare deems that service is worth, if it was necessary, and they can deny it all together and prevent the Dr from charging the patient. So there ya go.. some ppl have medicare and Medicaid.. some Medicare/ private ins and some just medicare (the over 65 or disabled).
Morgan Nelson correct, unless you have a secondary insurance, which will usually pick up that 20% (or atleast a good chunk of it anyway). But since you have to pay for the secondary (unless it's something like Medicaid or similar) allot of seniors don't have that. It can get quite pricey depending. But you're right generally 80/20 is the rule.
You have to qualify for Medicare.... you have to work a minimum (and paid into Medicare) for a minimum of 10 years and be 65 years of age. There are other cases where the sick and much younger who haven’t worked to ‘pay into the system’ who get on Medicare but those cases are rare and not how most people get Medicare. If you have been ‘working under the table’ and not paying into it.... you turn 65, you will get nothing!
I live in Texas. The short answer: If you are wealthy, American healthcare is wonderful. If you are anything less than wealthy, it's an unaffordable nightmare, that will let you die if you can't pay. (Scary, huh?)
Had cancer a year ago and had to pay a $300 copay day of surgery (was a leave the same day surgery) then to be billed a few weeks later for $500+ stopped going for follow up test dew to the lack of Insurance companies caring for the people’s health instead of lining their pockets the U.S needs a NHS would help out a great deal. Also some health care costs less to pay out of pocket than to use the Insurance company
Keith Mote You would pay nothing for cancer treatment here, even prescriptions are free, plus mandatory 6 months off minimum (can be longer dependent on treatment etc), paid, if you work. Some people in the UK knock it but they don't realise how good we have it.
In Norway we pay up to a certain point, and after that you get a "free card". I think if your hospital bills exceeds £150 in one year, everything after that is covered by the government. it's maybe not as good, but we make up for it in education. ;) we only pay about £100 per year for higher education (uni/collage) (the equivalent of 6th form is free), and you can take out a loan from the government, but if you finish your study on schedule, 40% of your loan is converted to a "scholarship" so you don't have to pay it back. (Y) you can also choose to only get the scholarship bit, and finish your education debt free, but you usually have to work on the side then, cause it's not that much. most people choose to take out the loan either way, because the interest on the student loan is a lot lower than any other loan, so its better to take advantage of that, and rather save if you're able and you can buy an apartment or something when you're done with uni.
I live in america. Last year i had medical problems. $700 for an ambulance, $16,000-ish for surgery, then so much more for prescriptions and hospital fees and etc. I wanted to go to college this year
British English with Joel & Lia thank you so much for replying. I love all of your videos. You’re correct Judy. It really is awful that the government cannot reach an agreement over it all. Obama’s plan actually backfired in a way because it required all employers to give healthcare to employees that worked full time (or something to that degree) So what do the greedy employers do? Make all of their employees part time, therefore forcing them deeper into poverty. I mean several other countries, including Canada and Great Britain have found a way to make it work, it’s just a shame the US can’t do the same.
No they won't.That is why we the people need to yake a stand for Universal Health Care!Notice I said"we the people" it has nothing to do with a political party.
Fascinating, we in the US who don’t have employer sponsored health insurance find this sad. I had employer sponsored insurance for many years, but it was dropped 2 years ago. With “Obamacare” I was able to purchase an insurance policy that costs me $622 a month. Visits to my doctor cost $45 each time and my maximum “out of pocket” is $6000 a year. Without “Obamacare” I would have been lucky to find an insurance company to cover me for less than $3000 a month. If I ever have a serious illness, even with insurance I am likely to have to pay the $6000 each year. It’s very frightening, and for many of us we think twice before doing any test or procedures, which could cause worse problems down the road. We even avoid ambulances, many people choose to use Uber instead, as you could be stuck paying 10’s of thousands to a private ambulance company.
We will make another video on UK tax, but you can earn £11,500 tax-free, but anything over £11,500 you'll pay 20% tax, If you earn above £45,000 you'll pay 40% tax. If you earn over £150,000 you'll pay 45% tax.
sounds like another interesting topic for Joel & Lia, because just doing a quick calculation, you end up paying in taxes pretty much 1/3 or 1/2 of your salary and considering london is an expensive city, I think it's a lot... I hope I'm wrong but that's something a londonder could explain us.
Whenever you guys make a video comparing the UK to the US I get so envious and wish I was British because EVERYTHING seems so much better there 😂❤️healthcare, gun laws, social norms, lots of vegetarianism, etc.😭😭 Thinking about moving to London and going to college there, because I’ve had enough of this American nonsense, pls save me 😭😂😂
Carter Jackson I agree with daisystar shine, London is a shithole- true there are no guns and healthcare is free but your quality of life would be better and cheaper in anyplace outside of London
The prescription price is just to deter waste and put off trivial use. In some cases this standard price is more expensive than an off the shelf version of a popular product so you would usually find you use it for drugs that cant be sold over the counter like antibiotic or the expensive drugs
We in the US still have an issue with healthcare coverage. Government Officials promise the Moon and deliver the kitchen sink. We need a single payer healthcare system.
I totally agree that we need a single payer healthcare system like in the UK. The powerful insurance lobbies will do everything in their power to prevent it.
Wish we had this!!!!! Our son recently was doubled over in pain, we thought it was gallbladder or appendicitis. Emergency Room, lots of tests and nothing was found. The attack subsided a few hours later and happily hasn't returned. We had to pay over $4,000!!!! And we have health insurance for which my husband has hundreds of dollars withheld from his pay each month. That's it, we're moving to England 🇺🇸✈️🇬🇧
There is Cobra if you lose your job.. More then 90 percent have health insurance. With Obamacare it cost more then it did before for most people.. Obamacare sucks.. I am lucky my husband is retired military and only have 500 a year and only have no copay if I go on base medical . Pay no RX if you go to the base . If we go out on the town I pay the max 20 dollars for RX and 20 for specialist ...
My husband works for a small company. Both my son and I have pre-existing conditions. We literally couldn't buy insurance. The Affordable Care Act was a godsend. It's not perfect, though. We should have gone to single payer.
If Progressives start voting as a block all the time, we could go single payer very quickly. It just doesn't happen because of the difference in the way Conservatives and Progressives view voting. Conservatives see voting as a form of duty, while most Progressives have to "feel motivated" to vote. Unfortunately, that's difficult to do while also getting a large group to vote a as a block. Perhaps the horror that is Trump will do it once, but history shows it wouldn't probably last longer than one or two elections, if that.
In Germany, we have so-called Bismark model health care system where everyone is covered by the insurance system. No one can be out-out of the system even the foreigners. When you work, the payment for the insurance is deducted directly from your salary. Its about 15% of your total salary but you only pay half of 15% and the other half is paid by your employer. We also have great health care system like NHS in England.
You only see the socialist negative in a film. Also, imagine a country this size trying to do tax payer funded health care. It would be insane. The freeloaders would crush it. And I have never known anyone who has ever been refused emergency care. There are also many programs for the unemployed in case. It’s not perfect. But it encourages personal responsibility. The thing I notice repeatedly about your comments about America is you have not grown up with the pioneer spirit. A lot of youth now have had it so soft that we even see a push for the nanny socialist state here. Nothing is ever free. Somebody pays.
The size of a country has no bearing on the idea of a national healthcare system working or not. The whole "freeloading" thing is propaganda. You can't just never do something because some people will misuse a service. "Personal responsibility", outside of Conservative mindsets, really means "succeed, or if you can't/don't, just drop dead and get out of the way of those who did". A national healthcare system is the only properly modern and fair system.
Hi, Joel. Hi, Lia. This was fascinating! I hope you make more videos like this. Some of this I already knew, most of it I didn't. But the big thing was NHS workers getting discounts - I had no idea. I think that's great!
Also if you happen to need more that one perception you can sign up to the pre payment perception service where you only need to pay £105.90 per year and get as many as you need for that
I realize that I am a relatively liberal American, but this makes my heart hurt! My husband is a nurse in the Emergency Department, and he sees, on a daily basis, people who are on death’s door who “gave in” and came to the Emergency Department fearing for their lives, who had avoided it for weeks, months, maybe years. Some of them save their lives in that decision, but also ruin their lives, in a sense, because they’re saddled with hundreds of thousands, or sometimes millions of dollars of debt. Americans regularly find themselves literally calculating the value of their lives when deciding to seek health care. “If I live another ten years, I can pay off my treatment. If I only live another seven years, I’m leaving my family in debt.” That is no way to live. Even as someone with excellent health insurance, I’ve found myself putting off health complaints because I was worried about my deductible (which is the amount of money you must pay for health care before your health insurance steps in and begins to pay for 50-80%, depending on your plan.) It’s not terribly popular in the US, as it would significantly raise taxes, but I can’t help but think that Americans would be a more peaceful people if they lived less in fear for their lives and livelihoods.
I'd be too nervous to live in the US for that reason (but not the only) - our doctors' appointments are free as well, and not only did I have non-elective surgery twice and stayed for days to recover, but my son was saved by an emergency op for a life-threatening burst appendix and stayed in hospital to recover for almost a week. We don't pay for any of that. Yes, in Canada, like the NHS our taxes do pay for it, and sure, there's room for improvement especially since some cutbacks and recent changes, but thank god it's a solution that works overall and all can rely on it.
Also with prescription charges they are free definetly until 16 abd if you stay on in education til 18 if you are recieving certain benefits or if (like me) I'm on a certain long term medication that means the entirety of my prescription is free (a total of 9 medications) but my parents pay the charges for theirs (my mum has a pre payment card so it is slightly reduced) our NHS is wonderful
As an American my employer provided insurance costs $90 (US) per month and has a $4000 deductible with a 30% copay. So if I get sick and I need surgery or other treatments totalling $100K I would end up paying over $30K for that bill. If you get a serious illness, the bill can easily add up to $100K. This is how people can be bankrupted even with insurance.
U.S. healthcare does vary by someone's circumstances. Much of of the care is controlled by the insurance you have. I.e., my mom was in the hospital and had fluid in her lungs. The doctors did not know why she had fluid in her lungs. Her insurance said she should be discharged b/c there was not a diagnosis. Her docs said she needed oxygen to be discharged or she would die. Her insurance said they would not provide for the oxygen b/c there was not a diagnosis. The hospital went back and forth with the insurance to get this for her b/c the insurance was pushing her out. A day or two after being released she was back in. It was simply to early to discharge an 80 year old woman, but the hospital seemed bound by what the insurance wanted, not what the docs or patient wanted.
In the U.S. we can get insurance. I have major surgery and it became infected. I was off for 11 months, but because I saved up my sick leave and had insurance I never missed a paycheck and my part of the hospital bill was a lot, but I filed bankruptcy and voided it.
As a nurse who worked in an endoscopy center, we would get a lot of patients above the age of 50 saying they came to the USA for health care because they won’t do surgery past that age I guess.
I'll take the US system any day. If I needed throat surgery waiting six months would be insane. I'd schedule it for the next day in the US. Private insurance would pay everything minus a $100 deductible. And when people are genuinely poor, either medicaid or generous hospitals run by religious groups would provide the services for almost no cost. The taxes we'd pay for an NHS system in the US would be insanely high and would actually hurt the working poor more than prescription plans or co-pays. The biggest problem in the US is that people are not educated about their health insurance options - or how to use the system - not what the system provides.
This is so insightful. I’ve always wanted to know these little things about the UK. There are so many things that us Americans believe are just “how it works” but to the rest of the world they don’t make sense. You guys should do a video about lifestyle, financial, & “normal” things. Do you guys have car insurance? Does the dentist count? Etc
I am a 51 year old US physician and there is more to unpack here than space allows. Health insurance is largely employer provided and with rising costs American citizens pay more for health care every through cost shifting. Medicare and Medicaid are federal programs designed to help elderly and disabled (Medicare) or poor (Medicaid). American healthcare is a business and as such all participants expect to get paid.
If you have the money you can go private, you can pay also into a health insurance such has Bupa or you can use the NHS. A lot of the NHS doctors also work in the private sector.
@@joyridgway6398 I feel like this fact alone should be enough to convince libertarian Americans who worry about wait times and stuff. Americans are all about choice, and so long as you always have that choice, they should at least have a higher baseline for care.
To give you an Idea of what it costs. I live in the US in a Northern State in a major city. I live in Detroit. The cost for myself my husband and my three children to have medical coverage that includes dental and vision would it cost me $ $600 a month. That doesn't include the fees there are occur when you visit a doctor. Those are called co-pays that could be anywhere between $20 for a regular visit and $50 for a specialist. Then there are co-pays on medicine and there are some medicines that are just not covered. My son has special needs and one of his medicines that are not covered is $300. Every month I look for a coupon online to get that price down.
You don’t have to get health insurance through your employer in the USA. You can get private insurance through the government and pay a monthly payment. I pay about $550 a month for health and dental insurance for me, my husband and my daughter and we have $500 dollar deductible. So after I have paid $500 out of pocket on dr visits and/or procedures I only have to pay 20% of everything else. I honestly like our health care system.... we get treated quickly and fairly. The government also offers assistance to people and children that have low income. My birth control is free and most of my medications cost between $3-30.
NHS is one of the things I miss most about the UK. In Sweden where I live now it's not super expensive, but you have to pay £25 every time you go to the doctor. And you have to pay for your medicine, although there's a yearly cap on both appointments and medecins so once you reach that you won't pay anymore for a year,
I was in the hospital for about 10 days, and I would have been charged $37,000.(if that helps) there is health care for indigent people in the U.S ( but I believe it is no where as good as the NHS) if a person is terminated from a job in the US and has insurance through a job, they can pay through what is called “cobra” and one can keep their insurance, but it is not particularly inexpensive.
If you haven't, you should watch Sicko, by Michael Moore. It does seems that health is a luxury when it's not, and never should be a business. Congrats for your channel! :)
Wales has free prescriptions as well and in Wales if you die the hospital can take away your organs unless you hopped out England are thinking of doing the same thing soon
I think to better understand what health care is like in America, imagine if rather than having only the NHS, you had a bunch of NHSes to choose from. You could pick a cheap one and pay less taxes or pick a better one and pay more taxes. If you couldn't afford it, you would qualify for a free one. I started to lose the ability to feel my hands and it became harder to walk. I went to my doctor who referred me to a neurosurgeon that said I desperately needed to have an extensive Cervical Laminoplasty because bone growths were crushing my spinal cord. Three weeks later I had the surgery, and was in physical and occupational therapy a couple times a week for a couple months. Because I have relatively good insurance, the cost of my surgery and all related doctors appointments was capped at $5000. Each therapy day I had a $20 co-pay. With my insurance, most the prescriptions I get are only a few dollars for a 90 day supply, although I do have one that is about $40. A lot of people in the US envy the UK because they think everything is "free" but how much do you pay in taxes? I think I pay about $300/month for my insurance, but I would have to check my pay stub to be sure. It's taken out of my paycheck by my employer before taxes. (PS If you lose your job, you typically have 30 days to get another one or basically pay both your share and your employer's share of the cost and get it on your own.) I suspect the NHS would average about the same as an average American insurance company. What I like about not having a state-run monopoly is that competition holds companies accountable for quality and cost-effectiveness. State-run systems all tend to compromise quality and/or availability to pay for bloated administrations. The NHS may be good at common problems, but there are a lot of people from the UK and other socialist countries that come to America to get highly specialized treatments in a timely manner that open market competition has produced.
I clicked on this video from your other video. As an American I want to just address 1 thing regarding health care. You mentioned in your other video that your health care is paid for through your taxes. In the US not everyone pays taxes. As a matter of fact 43% of Americans don’t pay federal taxes. That’s 75 million people not paying taxes. Typically the people not paying federal taxes are the lowest wage earners. For those people there is free healthcare in the US or reduced cost healthcare. I personally would love a national healthcare system since I am paying federal income tax it would be nice to benefit from my taxes. Instead I pay over $1,500 per month for health care while my taxes go to pay for healthcare for someone who doesn’t actually pay taxes. Makes perfect sense, right?
Health is so expensive in the US, it is quite overwhelming. My grandmother had both her hips replaced and it totaled to about 150,000 US dollars. It can really add up if you have multiple things done to you or family members.
wow. i am incredibly jealous. I live in the us and our healthcare system is absolutely awful. i do not have health insurance now because i cant afford it, but even when i did pay for health insurance, i paid about 100$ a month and couldn't get in to see a doctor. the wait for a consultation appointment was 3 months, in which you would just fill out paperwork and meet your doctor they would not do an exam or even prescribe me birth control in that appointment. when the day came for that appointment, i couldnt get the day off work so i had to call in and lose a days pay, then on my way to the appointment they called and said the doctor was out sick and i had to make another appointment for 2 months later. later that year while i was between jobs and therefore canceled my health insurance i ended up getting an allergic reaction for the first time in my life. due to my face swelling up, my throat feeling constricted, and pressure in my chest i finally went to the ER after dealing with it for 3 days. i was with a doctor for less then 30 mins where they gave me some medicine then sent me home i was then given a bill of 1,500$ . luckily i am one of the lucky ones, due to not being employed at that time the hospital was able to get me on OHP. which is a government ran health insurance, difficult to get on if you are employed, but cost nothing and is the best health insurance in my state in my opinion. point being i didnt have to pay it. my boyfriend on the otherhand had to go to the hospital last year, he had health insurance, but do to how sick he was he had to be at the hospital for 2 months, his health insurance only covered so much. he is now declaring bankruptcy. getting sick can easily ruin your entire life here .
Caroline Laud-Jones This is what people don't see here, generally some who don't have private health, but here it's the same, you pay your Dr to be refered to a private Dr, but you have a wait here 2 wks to see a consultant before you see a Dr, as I used the system as my company pays for BUPA, but as I had also started through the NHS the NHS was quicker and the operation was the same time as the consultancy would have been. Some people have the impression from US TV shows that it's similar just Dr and Op not consultation, Dr then Op
We have a similar system in Guatemala. It's called IGSS: Instituto Guatemalteco de Seguridad Social [Guatemalan Institute of Social Security]. On paper it's one of the best programs in the world. In practice, unfortunately, it's one of the worst. Anybody who has a job has "free" health care because we get deducted 4.83 % from our pay check which goes to fund IGSS. Bad part is that it's badly managed. The hospitals are understaffed and the facilities [buildings and equipment] are not the best. There are endless lines (queues) so you can be checked on the same day you go (you can be their at 5am and be seen at 2pm or later), or if you're going to set up an appointment it could be months before anybody sees you. If it's not an emergency, of course.
I'm from America and my migraine tablets cost $600 for 30, and my $700 for my seizure meds for 30. Because the $2 offbrands don't work, and the insurance company doesn't want to pay for the prescription, I have to get coupons from the manufacturers or fork over obscene amounts.
Hi Joel and Lia, I am in Brazil. Our national health system is called SUS. It is based on NHS. The system is entirely free of any cost at the point of service for any person, including foreigners. However, the system is not that good in my opinion for many reasons. Lower middle class and poor people need to use the service. Middle class, upper middle class and rich people prefer to pay private health insurance. I used to have my own private health insurance. Due to the economic crisis in Brazil, I had to become member of SUS. The expensive drugs are not available. As "Health is a right of all and an obligation of the State, guaranteed by socioeconomic policies which seek to the reduction of the risk of disease and of other grievances and to the universal and equal access to the actions and services in its promotion, protection and recuperation.", in order to receive very expensive drugs we need to use the government.
the only downside, because the funding is a local area, the more expensive or recently discovered treatments may not be available locally as they are not yet judged cost-effective, sometimes you need to move house to get treatment, referred to as a Postcode lottery some people then crowdfund a private trip to America for treatment
My family and I are entrepreneurs, so we don’t have our health insurance through our family business. We just pick a plan ourselves, and pay each month for it. It would be amazing to have something similar to what you guys have in England. I love being an American, but like you all talked about how some people struggle to pay here and other’s who don’t even get seen about because they don’t have the funds, it would be wonderful to know you can always have healthcare no matter your situation. Love you both! - Kelsey Pruett from Alabama 🤟🏻😊
