A study conducted by the Commonwealth Fund last year revealed that the US government allocates twice as much per capita to health care compared to other wealthy countries surveyed, such as Canada, the Netherlands, Great Britain or New Zealand. Interestingly, the US federal government is not getting the most out of every dollar spent, as residents of other developed countries are much more likely to get help paying medical bills when they need it.
That gives an idea of the blatant inefficiency of the US healthcare system. How could other countries provide better healthcare for less? They must know something that the United States does not know. Although knowledge is one thing, implementing what you learn is quite another. It’s ridiculous to see that even socialist countries like Cuba, for example, can offer better help with medical bills to their citizens than the United States.
Doesn’t it bother you to know that a patient can be denied treatment because they have no money? What if they tell you that there are millions of Americans in the same boat?
Finding a common thread about what ails the US healthcare system is easy: insurance doesn’t guarantee you help at all. If we are to consider the State of California as a microcosm of the US healthcare system, the situation is worrisome. A study by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research reports that one in seven adults in California has some form of debt.
What the numbers don’t emphasize enough is the effect of debt on the individual’s psyche. The UCLA study touched on this when it reported that someone who is in debt is much more likely to delay getting the medical care they need if they don’t get help with medical bills first. In doing so, the patient plays with her life and the state of her family’s affairs. Sometimes her condition stabilizes, but it can also deteriorate just as quickly. The problem is multiplied if the patient is the head of the household because he will probably keep his state of health to himself in the misguided attempt to shield his family from worry.
There is an adage that one cannot escape death and taxes. With all but a few, add medical expenses there, and with millions of Americans needing immediate help with medical bills, you can see the scope of the problem.