Healthcare costs

I'm moving this from the other thread.  This has been discussed before, but I am yet to ever read a clear answer on how our health care is so much higher than other countries, yet a lower life expectancy and arguably no where worth the extra cost.  According to this and many other sources, in the USA, we pay much more than any other developed nation on health care.  Not only from your pay check, but our tax dollars.  In 2019, over $9k per person was paid using taxes.  That is almost 3 times the amount that Canadians' pay, and have "basic healthcare for all".  Canadians' pay less out of pocket than us as well.  Basically, there is their tax payer healthcare, then there is their elite healthcare for those that can afford, to avoid the long lines and get care that isn't covered by their state care.  Their elite total is still half of ours...  How is this even possible?  I know many feel the one payer option will raise costs and provide less care and is some far left socialist idea.  Fiscal conservatism is about spending the least amount of public funds as possible.  When doing so, you get the best bang for your buck.  How could these numbers pass any of the "fiscal conservative hawks"???
 
https://www.statista.com/statistics/283221/per-capita-health-expenditure-by-country/
 

There is a multi billion dollar industry whose sole purpose of existence is to make a profit by serving as a barrier between patients and patient care. Market based private insurance is just a fundamentally inefficient system.

The hawks only care about “fiscal conservatism” when the democrats want to spend money. They don’t care if you are getting gouged for the insulin you need in order to stay alive.

I think it is because in the US we can get almost any healthcare we need/want, except purely cosmetic like ordering off a restaurant menu.

My wife had back surgery in Cleveland a few years ago. It is a week long process, so the clinic has an agreement with a local hotel for good rates. Almost all of the people at the hotel are there for back surgery.

The hotel offered a buffet for guests so we got to talk to a bunch of other patients and their families. The preponderance of them were from Canada. When asked why they came to Cleveland for surgery, the answer was the same, our healthcare does not cover back surgery unless it is something broken — no disc surgery, no nerve canal surgery, no misalignment surgery. All were in the US paying fully out of pocket for those types of surgery.

When asked why they just didn’t pay out of pocket in Canada, their answer was because those types of surgeries were not covered by the healthcare system, doctors didn’t train or practice in them, so the only choice was to go to the US to get them done.

When in Heathrow airport in London, my wife tripped the metal detector with her titanium hip replacement. They pulled her out of line to do a scan. She showed them her hip replacement card, provided for such reasons, but the security guard had never seen one before or heard of it.

He got his supervisor and they looked at the card, but still scanned her hip area. He was puzzled and got the next level manager.

This guy was a help because it hadn’t been too long since it was in their news that Prince Phillip had had hip replacement surgery. When we asked why this was uncommon, the answer was only the wealthy who could afford to go elsewhere or have a team come in, as in the Prince’s case, could afford such a thing because it was not covered under their healthcare system.

Having choices costs money. If that is too much money, I guess it depends on what you need done.

Somewhere between 4 and 6 weeks ago, I read that Mark Cubin, billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, has started a new drug company. Only 100 different drugs available, but he's selling them for just 15% over cost. Probably none of those drugs are the super expensive ones, but he's a pretty smart and business savvy guy, and if he believes he can make money at it while saving folks thousands per year, then more power to him. (They've been makin' insulin for what? 60 plus years? The R & D was done decades ago. Why should my son have to pay nearly a grand a month for his insulin if he was not insured by his company)? These prescription drug prices are so high because of greed and gouging. If your life is at stake, you'll pay what they ask to stay alive, and if you can't afford to pay, oh well. Why does a single Tylenol given in a hospital show a charge of $15.00 when you can buy a bottle of 100 for less? Gouging!