Aa
SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, will it help or hurt research
weigh in if you want to!! I think we'd set the clock back 50 years, but that's just me.
Just google "israel medical advances" or "israel medical innovations." It's absolutely amazing what sort of science comes out of that little country - including some cutting-edge research on an hcv vaccine.
Just curious - What major medical advance has come out of Israel?
Thanks in advance?
Thanks in advance?
I pay $474 a month for my insurance, out of pocket because I free-lance and haven't had much work of late. I don't care where that money comes from, whether out of pocket, lowered earnings, or higher taxes. It's still, no matter how you cut it, $474 a month.
But if the insurance companies were cut out of the loop, with their operating expenses of approximately 20%, and if the government handled the non-medical chores (which are estimated to be 2 to 3 percent), I would guess that my payment would be more like $400 a month. I'm for saving money.
As far as choice goes, I belong to Kaiser, which represents the principal model that a socialized medical system will probably follow, according to my primary care doc. I have completely free choice within the Kaiser realm. They employ as many doctors in Southern California as populate a city the size of Minneapolis, and I can choose among all of them. What Kaiser does is initially assign a patient to a primary doc, who one can either accept or reject. I went through three until I found my present guy, who I've been with since 1991. He's great.
Although Kaiser has its share of lemons, the percentages are about the same as at any private hospital, like Cedars Sinai or UCLA, which are considered tops in my part of the country. (Cedars, for example, is famous for giving people HIV in the 80's.) The kind of physician who chooses to work there is generally somebody who wants to practice medicine without the encumbrances of running a business and isn't excessively greedy. Like National Health in Britain, Kaiser pays its staff competitively and well. They're not going to be billionaires like Beverly Hills plastic surgeons, but all their children will be able to attend good private schools.
Regarding the cautionary legends of lines and overcrowded waiting rooms, I've had way smoother sailing with my hcv than many if not most of the people here. Upon diagnosis, I was sent to a hepatologist within a week, and everything moved like clockwork after that. I got all the helper drugs I needed, even Procrit at an hgb level of 11.5. My copays were $15 per visit or test, $25 for each month's supply of INF and another $25 a month each for riba and Procrit.
The only time I had a delay in treatment at Kaiser was about 5 years ago when I had a bunion that needed surgery. I had to wait about three months and was a bit annoyed, but actually a bunion shouldn't have the priority level of hcv or any other serious illness, so I accept that sort of wait.
Now, regarding research, I am very much aware that the profit motive is a tremendous incentive to progress. But since the pharmaceutical companies will still exist, how will socialized medicine affect research? Many of the major medical advances in recent years come out of Europe and Israel, countries which have socialized medicine.
But if the insurance companies were cut out of the loop, with their operating expenses of approximately 20%, and if the government handled the non-medical chores (which are estimated to be 2 to 3 percent), I would guess that my payment would be more like $400 a month. I'm for saving money.
As far as choice goes, I belong to Kaiser, which represents the principal model that a socialized medical system will probably follow, according to my primary care doc. I have completely free choice within the Kaiser realm. They employ as many doctors in Southern California as populate a city the size of Minneapolis, and I can choose among all of them. What Kaiser does is initially assign a patient to a primary doc, who one can either accept or reject. I went through three until I found my present guy, who I've been with since 1991. He's great.
Although Kaiser has its share of lemons, the percentages are about the same as at any private hospital, like Cedars Sinai or UCLA, which are considered tops in my part of the country. (Cedars, for example, is famous for giving people HIV in the 80's.) The kind of physician who chooses to work there is generally somebody who wants to practice medicine without the encumbrances of running a business and isn't excessively greedy. Like National Health in Britain, Kaiser pays its staff competitively and well. They're not going to be billionaires like Beverly Hills plastic surgeons, but all their children will be able to attend good private schools.
Regarding the cautionary legends of lines and overcrowded waiting rooms, I've had way smoother sailing with my hcv than many if not most of the people here. Upon diagnosis, I was sent to a hepatologist within a week, and everything moved like clockwork after that. I got all the helper drugs I needed, even Procrit at an hgb level of 11.5. My copays were $15 per visit or test, $25 for each month's supply of INF and another $25 a month each for riba and Procrit.
The only time I had a delay in treatment at Kaiser was about 5 years ago when I had a bunion that needed surgery. I had to wait about three months and was a bit annoyed, but actually a bunion shouldn't have the priority level of hcv or any other serious illness, so I accept that sort of wait.
Now, regarding research, I am very much aware that the profit motive is a tremendous incentive to progress. But since the pharmaceutical companies will still exist, how will socialized medicine affect research? Many of the major medical advances in recent years come out of Europe and Israel, countries which have socialized medicine.
Thanks. I must say I appreciated your post and sympathize.
Oddly, I found this board through the Vertex message board at Yahoo Finance. I check out the message boards there now and then for stocks I own or am thinking about. It is not the critical DD, but still you can find some kernels, including this board.
As the moniker indicates, I've gone through 3 western treatments so far, each got the virus very low, but not low enough.
Good luck to you!
Oddly, I found this board through the Vertex message board at Yahoo Finance. I check out the message boards there now and then for stocks I own or am thinking about. It is not the critical DD, but still you can find some kernels, including this board.
As the moniker indicates, I've gone through 3 western treatments so far, each got the virus very low, but not low enough.
Good luck to you!
Thank you 4C that was an EXCELLENT post. I had forgottetn about your sisters experience and if that isn't the best example of how it should be I'll eat my hat. Wow. Thanks very much for a great intelligent pro-healthcare for all position.
astute post. I just didn't want to go there, because I'm long winded enough just in just the points I did cover....:) welcome, haven't personally seen you here before. Be well.
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