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Topic: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare  (Read 15979 times)

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Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« on: March 01, 2017, 01:34:44 PM »

I frequent another forum that has a lot of Americans and today there was a post from a guy who has advanced throat cancer.  Apparently, he thought he had insurance until the bills started rolling in and it's not enough. His work set up a go fund me page, I guess as an alternative to providing proper insurance.  He was trying to act like he was just posting some news but it was obvious he was scrambling to raise money so he can live.

WTF!  What is wrong with America?  This poor guy was scrabbling around to raise 10k so he can have cancer treatment and not even mentioning his two small kids .   He was already talking about himself in the past tense. 

I can't see how Americans can put up with it. 


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Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #1 on: March 01, 2017, 01:44:02 PM »
I've seen several of these types of campaigns over the last few years - not just Go Fund Me, but online fan communities holding events to raise money for someone's healthcare treatment.

It makes me so sad that people have to worry about these things. My first reaction to the campaigns is always: what on earth does the US have against universal healthcare? If they had it, this wouldn't have to happen.


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« Last Edit: March 01, 2017, 01:45:22 PM by ksand24 »


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Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #2 on: March 01, 2017, 02:44:10 PM »
I haven't lived there for so long that I almost can't comment, but I think it's about socialism, and the deep American belief that government can't be trusted.  Of course these funny ideas are encouraged by the deep pockets of insurance companies.

I find it amazing that Americans can talk about obscure details of insurance policies the same way we can talk about article 50.
« Last Edit: March 01, 2017, 02:45:28 PM by jimbocz »


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #3 on: March 01, 2017, 03:14:00 PM »
I definitely think the US is way behind the game with no universal healthcare.  No doubt.

BUT, there are numerous campaigns in my area to send people TO the US for treatment they can't get on the NHS.

Basically both systems are flawed and I haven't a clue on how either should be fixed!


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #4 on: March 01, 2017, 03:35:46 PM »
BUT, there are numerous campaigns in my area to send people TO the US for treatment they can't get on the NHS.

Good point, although I have also seen Go Fund Me campaigns in the US for money to pay their rent, bills and to feed their kids... all because the cost of healthcare has left them in poverty and they're about to become homeless!


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #5 on: March 01, 2017, 03:37:35 PM »
Good point, although I have also seen Go Fund Me campaigns in the US for money to pay their rent, bills and to feed their kids... all because the cost of healthcare has left them in poverty and they're about to become homeless!


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I know.  It's not right.  Healthcare should be a right not a privilege.


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #6 on: March 01, 2017, 04:05:00 PM »
I definitely think the US is way behind the game with no universal healthcare.  No doubt.

BUT, there are numerous campaigns in my area to send people TO the US for treatment they can't get on the NHS.

Basically both systems are flawed and I haven't a clue on how either should be fixed!

That is an interesting point.  I guess the ideal is American treatment with really good insurance.


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #7 on: March 01, 2017, 04:45:47 PM »
I think a lot of Americans personally know someone who has been wiped out by the US healthcare system.
I just hope that more people will ignore the fatalism of the argument that we are beyond repair. We are not beyond repair. We are never beyond repair. - AOC


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #8 on: March 01, 2017, 07:33:51 PM »
I haven't lived there for so long that I almost can't comment, but I think it's about socialism, and the deep American belief that government can't be trusted.  Of course these funny ideas are encouraged by the deep pockets of insurance companies.

I find it amazing that Americans can talk about obscure details of insurance policies the same way we can talk about article 50.

I lived there (Texas and Louisiana) for 30 years and many of the folks we spoke to feared socialism as if it were communism and they were back in the Cold War days. I couldn't count the number of hours I have spent trying to explain the difference between socialism and social programs. The USA old age pension and disability program is even called Social Security which no one I knew would dream of doing without, along with universal healthcare for those over 65, Medicare. Other big social programs that the majority of Americans support is healthcare for those in poverty, Medicaid, and healthcare for veterans (ex-military) the Veterans Health Association.

The fact is that the USA spends more tax money per head on healthcare than most other countries that have universal healthcare (including the UK). The healthcare companies in the USA spend more money lobbying Congress than the next 2 or 3 industries combined, which is why healthcare delivery in the USA is geared to serve them rather than the electorate.
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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #9 on: March 01, 2017, 07:51:25 PM »
Although I mentioned Medicare above as universal healthcare for those over 65 it is still expensive with the average couple paying between $5k and $7k per year. Medicare itself costs each person $134/month (more for those with high incomes) but you are still on the hook for 20% of the costs plus this does not cover any prescriptions. So everyone pays for extra insurance to cover that 20% gap plus another insurance policy to pay some of the costs of the prescriptions.

Since I am in the grizzled, older generation, I get to talk with others, my age, and older. Some are paying more than $10,000./yr. for prescriptions, and much, much more for treatment of chronic conditions.
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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #10 on: March 01, 2017, 10:04:38 PM »
This just happened to my uncle. He was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Insurance wouldn't cover half the treatment or medicine. He managed to get a big university to sponsor some medicine that is being tested, and it helped prolong his life for a bit. But everything else wiped him and my aunt out financially. My parents are now helping my aunt with money. And it's just a shame, that you pay so much into insurance but they don't cover things when you really need it. I know no system is flawless, but that really effected my family.


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #11 on: March 01, 2017, 10:17:36 PM »
This just happened to my uncle. He was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Insurance wouldn't cover half the treatment or medicine. He managed to get a big university to sponsor some medicine that is being tested, and it helped prolong his life for a bit. But everything else wiped him and my aunt out financially. My parents are now helping my aunt with money. And it's just a shame, that you pay so much into insurance but they don't cover things when you really need it. I know no system is flawless, but that really effected my family.


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I'm sorry.
The truly awful thing is that when the time should be spent pulling for your loved one and supporting them through their illness, and coming to terms with it yourself, it is wasted fighting with the insurance company who seem to decline payment by default.  :-\\\\


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #12 on: March 01, 2017, 11:29:01 PM »
The real villains are the insurance companies. They take people's money and then do everything in their considerable power to avoid paying it back. But Americans would rather make insurance executives rich than allow a cent of their tax money to go towards helping poor people. It's a combination of the irrational fear of socialism and the deeply ingrained belief that people are poor due to their own moral failings. After all, America is the land of opportunity! If you're not rich and successful it's because you're not trying hard enough!

The UK has the same belief about the poor, which is why the NHS is underfunded. The US may have state of the art healthcare, but it's funded off the backs of the people who can least afford it and whose insurance won't allow them to take advantage of it. A universal healthcare system that is well-funded by people who believe in the principles of social safety nets strongly enough to be willing to pay to support them is the best healthcare system. But that mythical beast will never exist unless we all let go of the idea that we shouldn't have to give our "hard-earned money" to help people who we perceive to be less hardworking, less worthy, less something than we are.
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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #13 on: March 02, 2017, 06:13:25 AM »
The UK has the same belief about the poor, which is why the NHS is underfunded. The US may have state of the art healthcare, but it's funded off the backs of the people who can least afford it and whose insurance won't allow them to take advantage of it. A universal healthcare system that is well-funded by people who believe in the principles of social safety nets strongly enough to be willing to pay to support them is the best healthcare system.

I'm confused what you mean by this. How is the NHS underfunded because the UK doesn't want to pay for poor people?

We don't get a choice in how much we contribute to the NHS - we pay taxes (income tax, sales tax, fuel duty etc.), then the government decides how much funding it gets and uses money from our taxes to pay for it.

The majority of NHS funding (80%) comes from general taxation and only 20% comes from NI contributions. I was told once that a large chunk of NHS funding actually comes from the taxation of cigarettes and alcohol!


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Re: Americans begging for money to pay for basic healthcare
« Reply #14 on: March 02, 2017, 08:48:13 AM »
Yes, but the NHS desperately needs more money and where will that come from? This government is trying to privatise it, they would never agree to give it a bigger piece of the tax revenue. Although it's not the NHS so much as people's attitude about the benefits system and people who claim benefits that reveals their opinions on the value of poor people. 
On s'envolera du même quai
Les yeux dans les mêmes reflets,
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Tu seras mon unique projet.

Je t'aimais, je t'aime, et je t'aimerai.

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