Re:My grandmother died at home, just as she wanted. It cost ...
by retrac on Thursday February 09, 2023 @10:37AM
(#34725495)
They're different enough they cannot be directly compared in a meaningful way on a single criteria like "overall better".
I'm more familiar with the Canadian and American systems than with the UK, so I'll use it as an example. For Americans with decent insurance, it's generally easier and faster to find and get in to see both a general practitioner as well as a specialist, than in Canada. On the other hand, in Canada it's all part of one insurance scheme. So you can go see any doctor, or go to any hospital in the province, if they have a slot for you.
Surgeries that are not life critical (but still darn important, like knee joint repair) have a much shorter average wait in the USA. Essential surgeries happen about as quickly in either country, with comparable outcomes.
For Americans without decent insurance, they suffer denial of care due to inability to pay more than people do in Canada. But the dirty secret is that denial of care for inability to pay is still common in Canada. Lots of things aren't actually covered by the public insurer. When something isn't actually covered by the public insurer in Canada, the free market is just that, almost completely unregulated. There are no laws against insurers discriminating on the basis of pre-existing conditions or etc.
In the USA, publicly-funded care is actually better for some diseases where the US federal government has set up special programs to provide it. For example, everyone HIV+ and earning 400% or less of the US low income cut-off, is eligible for free HIV medication and doctor's visits and even hospital care. There's no analogy in Canada; in Ontario such drugs are covered for the very poor, and the working class is expected to pay much of it themselves.
Broadly I'd say there's more variability in the US. In the US, at a well-selected clinic or hospital, with excellent insurance, that is some of the best healthcare available in the world. Better than Canada's average care. But Canada's average care is still fairly close, and is available to nearly all residents of the country. Quality of care in the USA seems a fair bit worse for the poor.
I'm more familiar with the Canadian and American systems than with the UK, so I'll use it as an example. For Americans with decent insurance, it's generally easier and faster to find and get in to see both a general practitioner as well as a specialist, than in Canada. On the other hand, in Canada it's all part of one insurance scheme. So you can go see any doctor, or go to any hospital in the province, if they have a slot for you.
Surgeries that are not life critical (but still darn important, like knee joint repair) have a much shorter average wait in the USA. Essential surgeries happen about as quickly in either country, with comparable outcomes.
For Americans without decent insurance, they suffer denial of care due to inability to pay more than people do in Canada. But the dirty secret is that denial of care for inability to pay is still common in Canada. Lots of things aren't actually covered by the public insurer. When something isn't actually covered by the public insurer in Canada, the free market is just that, almost completely unregulated. There are no laws against insurers discriminating on the basis of pre-existing conditions or etc.
In the USA, publicly-funded care is actually better for some diseases where the US federal government has set up special programs to provide it. For example, everyone HIV+ and earning 400% or less of the US low income cut-off, is eligible for free HIV medication and doctor's visits and even hospital care. There's no analogy in Canada; in Ontario such drugs are covered for the very poor, and the working class is expected to pay much of it themselves.
Broadly I'd say there's more variability in the US. In the US, at a well-selected clinic or hospital, with excellent insurance, that is some of the best healthcare available in the world. Better than Canada's average care. But Canada's average care is still fairly close, and is available to nearly all residents of the country. Quality of care in the USA seems a fair bit worse for the poor.