Healthcare for tourists
May 24th, 2009, 12:10 PM
#21
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FWIW, noone is disagreeing with dedalus that the COST of health care in the US is ridiculously high. What people are arguing about is 1) the quality of US health care and, moreover 2) dedalus' thinking he can take advantage of it for free.
May 24th, 2009, 04:35 PM
#22
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Agreed the QUALITY of US healthcare IS the best in the world. Unfortunately it is no available to everyone. I believe it should be - but that it not under my control.
Nevertheless you won;t find better health care anywhere else - AS LONG AS you are able to pay for it. If you are unable to pay for it you may find yourself with no care at all.
And just for perspective, in NYC the average MD visit is, with no tests or procedures is about $150. Any tests will be significantly more. And prescriptions can range from $10 or so for a generic antibiotic to more than a hundred dollars for many other common prescriptions.
Nevertheless you won;t find better health care anywhere else - AS LONG AS you are able to pay for it. If you are unable to pay for it you may find yourself with no care at all.
And just for perspective, in NYC the average MD visit is, with no tests or procedures is about $150. Any tests will be significantly more. And prescriptions can range from $10 or so for a generic antibiotic to more than a hundred dollars for many other common prescriptions.
May 24th, 2009, 05:36 PM
#23
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Bottom line - you decide what chances you are willing to take. Just know that if you need any kind of health care you will pay for it - and they will find you later to collect. Medical collections is a big business in the US. And if you need any sort of medication, prescription or otherwise, you won't even get it until you have paid.
May 25th, 2009, 03:22 AM
#26
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nytraveler,
>>Agreed the QUALITY of US healthcare IS the best in the world.>In a comparison with five other countries, the Commonwealth Fund ranked the United States first in providing the “right care” for a given condition as defined by standard clinical guidelines and gave it especially high marks for preventive care, like Pap smears and mammograms to detect early-stage cancers, and blood tests and cholesterol checks for hypertensive patients. But we scored poorly in coordinating the care of chronically ill patients, in protecting the safety of patients, and in meeting their needs and preferences, which drove our overall quality rating down to last place. American doctors and hospitals kill patients through surgical and medical mistakes more often than their counterparts in other industrialized nations.
>>Agreed the QUALITY of US healthcare IS the best in the world.>In a comparison with five other countries, the Commonwealth Fund ranked the United States first in providing the “right care” for a given condition as defined by standard clinical guidelines and gave it especially high marks for preventive care, like Pap smears and mammograms to detect early-stage cancers, and blood tests and cholesterol checks for hypertensive patients. But we scored poorly in coordinating the care of chronically ill patients, in protecting the safety of patients, and in meeting their needs and preferences, which drove our overall quality rating down to last place. American doctors and hospitals kill patients through surgical and medical mistakes more often than their counterparts in other industrialized nations.
May 25th, 2009, 04:07 AM
#27
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If you have an article/study or other source to back up your statement that the quality of US healthcare is the best in the world, then I suggest you post it. Otherwise this statement of yours is just your opinion.
Why is it that royalty and the well-to-do from other countries wind up in the US for their "serious" medical care?
Why is it that royalty and the well-to-do from other countries wind up in the US for their "serious" medical care?
May 25th, 2009, 04:18 AM
#28
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Do you honestly think that the U.S. is the ONLY country that VIP's go to for serious medical care? Are you serious? There are NO other countries in the world that these people go to for medical care?? Really? Only the U.S.? Again, really? I think after about 2 minutes of googling, you'd find that loads of VIP's go to other countries besides the U.S. for various medical treatments, serious and not serious.
May 25th, 2009, 09:44 AM
#31
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I think some people are missing the point. there are good, bad and mediocre MDs in every country. It is possible to be misdiagnosed or mistreated anywhere. the best care in the US (granted very expensive) is better than anywhere else. Bad care in the US is bad - as is true in much of the developed world - although there are many countries in which even the best care would be awful by US standards.
I'm not trying to deny there is excellent healthcare elsewhere there is. But - things that are routinely available immediately to americans with insurance (including expensive cancer drugs and some types of surgery) are simply not available at all (the government won't pay for the drugs) or require a long wait in other countries in which everyone gets "free" healthcare. Yes, it is free, but it's also limited - unless you're very wealthy and can pay for everything out of pocket.
IMHO I don;t think either system is perfect. I think everyone should be covered - and I think everyone should have access to whatever surgeries, treatments and drugs they need - regardless of their insurance status or cost. But, again - I'm not in charge.
But - this is a long way from deciding to visit the US without insurance coverage. Obviously the OP can do whatever they want - and they probably will not need health care on a short visit. But - if they do - they will have to expect to pay a lot for it. (And yes, for small problems a "Doc in a Box" is usually faster and cheaper than an ER. But without a valid insurance or credit card and you won;t get any care.
I'm not trying to deny there is excellent healthcare elsewhere there is. But - things that are routinely available immediately to americans with insurance (including expensive cancer drugs and some types of surgery) are simply not available at all (the government won't pay for the drugs) or require a long wait in other countries in which everyone gets "free" healthcare. Yes, it is free, but it's also limited - unless you're very wealthy and can pay for everything out of pocket.
IMHO I don;t think either system is perfect. I think everyone should be covered - and I think everyone should have access to whatever surgeries, treatments and drugs they need - regardless of their insurance status or cost. But, again - I'm not in charge.
But - this is a long way from deciding to visit the US without insurance coverage. Obviously the OP can do whatever they want - and they probably will not need health care on a short visit. But - if they do - they will have to expect to pay a lot for it. (And yes, for small problems a "Doc in a Box" is usually faster and cheaper than an ER. But without a valid insurance or credit card and you won;t get any care.
May 25th, 2009, 10:28 AM
#32
Get some insurance. My DH had a heart attack last september. He is young and had just had a physical a few months before saying he was healthy as a horse. His numbers all said he was in great shape.
Stay in hospital and stent, etc... about 90,000 USdollars.
As far as care, he had excellent emergency care and he was picked up by ambulance and was treated and stented all in less than 1 hour from feeling heart attack symptoms. Not too shabby. Glad we have good health insurance.
Stay in hospital and stent, etc... about 90,000 USdollars.
As far as care, he had excellent emergency care and he was picked up by ambulance and was treated and stented all in less than 1 hour from feeling heart attack symptoms. Not too shabby. Glad we have good health insurance.
May 26th, 2009, 02:55 AM
#33
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sf7307,
Please show me where in that article it states that the U.S. quality of healthcare is #1. The only thing I saw where the U.S. ranked 1 was in providing "right care" See the following that I have already posted upthread.
>>In a comparison with five other countries, the Commonwealth Fund ranked the United States first in providing the “right care” for a given condition as defined by standard clinical guidelines and gave it especially high marks for preventive care, like Pap smears and mammograms to detect early-stage cancers, and blood tests and cholesterol checks for hypertensive patients. But we scored poorly in coordinating the care of chronically ill patients, in protecting the safety of patients, and in meeting their needs and preferences, which drove our overall quality rating down to last place. American doctors and hospitals kill patients through surgical and medical mistakes more often than their counterparts in other industrialized nations.
Please show me where in that article it states that the U.S. quality of healthcare is #1. The only thing I saw where the U.S. ranked 1 was in providing "right care" See the following that I have already posted upthread.
>>In a comparison with five other countries, the Commonwealth Fund ranked the United States first in providing the “right care” for a given condition as defined by standard clinical guidelines and gave it especially high marks for preventive care, like Pap smears and mammograms to detect early-stage cancers, and blood tests and cholesterol checks for hypertensive patients. But we scored poorly in coordinating the care of chronically ill patients, in protecting the safety of patients, and in meeting their needs and preferences, which drove our overall quality rating down to last place. American doctors and hospitals kill patients through surgical and medical mistakes more often than their counterparts in other industrialized nations.
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