Which makes sense given how American health care providers – having created the best health care system in the world – are so much more intransigent and coniving than the Iranian mullahs. It’s almost like Obama targets the people……

put these up on the roadside in the manner of the old “burma shave” signs…

sure, they won’t last long…but lots of people might see them in the meantime.

Where are the investigative journalists, besides John Stossel, who are shedding light on the problems with government health care every half hour, exposing the administration’s threats to the insurance industry lobby groups every fifteen minutes? Why isn’t there a new report every six hours about a new administration policy that oversteps it Constitutional bounds or statutory requirements, like thirty days notice before firing an Inspector General? Where is the journalistic outrage of administration lies, cover ups, misinformation, disinformation, policy failures (support Zelaya? waddadummass idea)? Oh LOOK, a Unicorn!

Based on my questions, we might as well write out the Freedom of the Press phrase in the First Amendment because newspapers and media outlets aren’t going to use it any more unless it is to attack and dismantle conservative politicians, whom they investigate and hound without ceasing. I never thought much of journalists before and even less do I now.

Ann NY on August 2, 2009 at 7:11 AM

Most of the points made about cancer treatment in the Hoover article cited by Ed via Jonah are based on data from the Lancet report. The report does not flatter the NHS in the UK.

I grew up under both NHS and American health care. Health care in the UK is not a disaster but has problems and is constantly being tinkered with. Basic treatment and ICU care will not lead to certain bankruptcy in the UK and there are a number of private providers offering alternative treatment and long term care options.

venividivici on August 1, 2009 at 11:39 PM

I would like to see a health policy which which aims to provide universal basic care to citizens, includes comprehensive tort reform, and encouragement for insurance providers to operate across the country. I think that is reasonable.

Prostate cancer mortality is 604 percent higher in the United Kingdom and 457 percent higher in Norway.

Question: Senator Chris Dodd just announced that through his ‘Cadillac’ health plan he has just discovered that he has Prostrate Cancer. He also announced that he is going to have a quick operation over the August break.

I wonder what options for surgery would he have (and how long would he have to wait) if he was only a 70 year old man named Chris Dodd who lives in Canada or the United Kingdom?

A quick Google search of Canadian Prostrate Cancer came back with various numbers – up to 244 days.

We’ll end up with either a horrible health care system, with no neighbors to visit for care, or a pay-twice system similar to our schools. Millions of Americans will end up paying for public health care, but also have to pay for private health care in order to get the quality they want.

Saudi billionaires seem to think the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, is pretty good. You’ll see ‘em there. They don’t come for the nightlife.

RBMN on August 1, 2009 at 1:06 PM

NO, they party in either Winona or jump across the river and party in LaCrosse

lexhamfox on August 1, 2009 at 9:56 PM

Lancet, the organization who put out a thoroughly debunked “study” on Iraqi deaths a couple of years back?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2006/oct/24/iraq.internationalnews

http://news.nationaljournal.com/articles/databomb/index.htm

Look, I would treat with skepticism any journal that has a bias towards nationalized healthcare. I also seem to recall that Lancet had a lot to do with hawking the debunked Stern Report as well. There are many ways to cherry pick information; remember how Britain was touted as a place that had low crime rates until it came out that Scotland Yard wouldn’t report a crime unless they solved it. After that people learned how crime ridden the UK was. I suspect the people involved with the NHS are not above that sort of reporting. You can’t have ever lived there (which I have) and go away thinking that what they have is better than what we have.

The sooner we take off the dogma goggles and look at this in a reasonable way the better off Americans will be.

lexhamfox on August 1, 2009 at 9:56 PM

OK, I’ll bite. What’s “reasonable”? ObamaCare?

1. Americans have better survival rates than Europeans for common cancers.

Canada, Australia and France also score very high in the Lancet study and France does better than the US for certain types of cancer. What is not mentioned is that the rates in the US vary more widely in the US than anywhere else and it depends on access to care. Hawaii actually has the highest survival rates in the US. Hawaii is also the first state where universal health care was attempted. Japan and Australia both do extremely well… Japan does better than the US.

2. Americans have lower cancer mortality rates than Canadians.

And there are states with national plans that do better than the US.

3. Americans have better access to treatment for chronic diseases than patients in other developed countries.

This is difficult to look into since studies vary and the Hoover article only looked at statins.

4. Americans have better access to preventive cancer screening than Canadians.

Again… lots of other countries seem to have screening levels close to or higher than the US.

5. Lower-income Americans are in better health than comparable Canadians.

Lower income Brits do better than Americans. Older Brits do better than older Americans. Again… horses for courses.

6. Americans spend less time waiting for care than patients in Canada and the United Kingdom.

There are lots of Americans not waiting because there is no care for them. Also, look at the OECD study and you will see all sorts of ways of looking at access to care and what that actually means.

7. People in countries with more government control of health care are highly dissatisfied and believe reform is needed.

Yeah… they want more and better care. None of those countries want to unwind national universal health care plans. None.

8. Americans are more satisfied with the care they receive than Canadians.

Pick a poll.. and then see if Canadians want to unwind national health care… same for the UK. Big no.

9. Americans have better access to important new technologies such as medical imaging than do patients in Canada or Britain.

And yet Americans are middle table when compared to other nationalized universal health care systems. Also the trend in the US is flat while other countries are leaping ahead when one compares 1990 figures to 2000. It will be interesting to see where this goes in future surveys.

10. Americans are responsible for the vast majority of all health care innovations.

Yes and we spend much more. This is where the article is completely right and yet it has little to do with real health care.

I’m not advocating that we mimic or directly copy any other nation’s plan. We need to find something that works well in the US and build on that. Per the first point, Hawaii is notable for its success in certain areas of care, and it has been innovative in attempting to drive to universal health care but the system is far from perfect… plenty of write ups out there on that.

The Hoover article looks at health care through an ideological prism much like ‘Sicko.’ Selectively taking statistics and studies which only prove one side’s argument while blatantly ignoring contrary evidence in those same reports doesn’t help us get to a better, more affordable system of health care. The sooner we take off the dogma goggles and look at this in a reasonable way the better off Americans will be.

Thank you for posting that link! I’ve been searching for that story, or something similar for days now. Since, with the congressional recess nearly upon us, the facts from the left will be fast, and loose as they try to sell this pig to the public.

One of the great virtues of our health care system is an ability to choose one’s doctor and if dissatisfied to choose someone else. Good luck with CommieCare.

For Obamacare don’t be surprised if Zero assigns dimwit Jocelyn “What’s this organ do?” Elders or Michael Jackson’s quota doctor (Wonder what happens if he mainlines meperidine?) the MeHarry graduate as your permanent an irrevocable treating physician. Celebrate diversity!

-President Barack H. Obama.

This will be the first thing to go under “Socialized Health Care”. With more than half the new drugs patents coming from the United States this will be horrific for the entire world.

Tommy_G on August 1, 2009 at 1:10 PM

So, Obamacare would be America going Gault.

Over on /watch?v=z-1ZfFBMf8s an Obamunist keeps covering up my post about my 29 year-old Cousin who died from CanadaCare neglect on 9July09. I think he doesnt want people to know of the Cruelty of Gov-run Health Care. Look & see how he posts & posts to cover up peoples personal stories. Hes trying to silence me & Gov will do this to you if you let them take over Health Care. Someone help me get my cousins story out, please.

Would anyone like to help this woman?

Morocco….

Riiiiiight. All those flights from NYC to Tangier for treatment must exist, right??

Also Monaco, Dominica, Andorra, and San Marino. All of whom have populations under 100,000 people. Smaller than most US Area Codes. Malta is above us and has a population of 400,000. Greece is above us, and outside of the major cities, it’s basically a third-world country.

It’s amazing the perspective a little common sense brings.

Doctor: “Well, technically I’m not a doctor, but since the implementation of ObamaCare, they’re giving medical licenses to anyone who stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night.”

Chavez and the like are at least more honest about it when they nationalize industries. Obama and crew have the cheek to suggest they are doing for the greater good.

JAM on August 1, 2009 at 5:31 PM

Hey, I was going to post that article! Oh well, here’s one you may not have read:

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/07/23/health_care_mythology_97552.html

It sums up all the arguments nicely.