[MERGED]Moving for the NHS; Opinions and Advise(Sicko Movie)

And yes - it really is hard to be poor.  Hard enough that those of us who have "been there" really don't need to be made to feel any worse for it. 

Oh, I've "been there" -- believe me. Long enough and hard enough that I've earned the right to say whatever I please about it.

Guess, as I've earned that "right", too, I just don't feel the need to exercise it.

Again I really do want to clarify this because I don't want to be hated by anybody.
It just seems unfair to me that even when I was poor with a baby and my husband in Law School and only working part time we decided that we could not afford to not have at least the emergency plan to avoid going bankruptcy. If I would have lived In Italy where I am from I would have had to pay taxes to support the medical system even on my little part time job. But in the US you can choose to contribute to the system or not. The problem is that when you do get cancer and get the best treatment available there is no way you will be able to pay the bill for it. So you file for bunkruptcy, you get free treatment but you did not contribute to support the system. The people that do pay are paying for you. It is an unfair system but it's the one we have.
I do realize that it would be hard even if it was mandatory to make everybody pay, and a big problem taht we have in California are the illegals that even with a socialized system would not be paying taxes to support the system and would still get free care. But maybe a big number of people would do get at leat the basic coverage because they don't want to brake the law.
I am very aware of the problem with deductibles and out of pockets, sometimes it seems like we are paying insurance for nothing since they don't want to cover so many things but at least I am not afraid I will have to go bankruptcy and I feel good about contributing to support the system.

  In the end, I was fine... had I not been fine I suppose I may have had a different opinion.. who knows... but I do know, had I been in the US without insurance, I'd still be wondering about that lump. 

I was in the U.S. with a lump and no insurance.  I went to the local planned parenthood type thing (not actually pp).  I was signed up under the Susan Komen fund.  I had a mammogram and an ultrasound within a two weeks.  Everything was paid for as was the follow up a few months later.

At the first appointment they had me fill out forms for medicare just in case I did have cancer.

I moved here I got a guided core needle biopsy by going private just to be sure and I was fine. 

But you wouldn't have had to not get tested.  I think the U.S. needs to do much more, but there are resources out there.

I totally agree with you SillySprite. That is part of the problem, some people will pay some kind of insurance while others seems to take a free ride. At least socialized medicine is equal for everybody. You pay a percentage of your paycheck and you all pretty much get the same service. Of course the very rich will always have more choices, they can go to the moon if they prefere the care there but everybody else will at least get their basic health needs met.

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. I see people who are better off working less hours and getting an insurance plan that is subsidized through my state, than working full time hours and paying for insurance through my company. I am not saying they are taking a "free ride", but that there is something seriously wrong with the health care industry when these are the choices people make to have coverage and to feed their families. As I said, being a single parent, if my ex weren't court ordered to carry insurance on my child, I'd be in a similar position. I make a fair wage and work over time every week to provide for us, but would not be able to afford to carry family coverage. I just see the system as messed up, when people are forced to work less to get by, because sometimes that's all they can do.  And seniors having to choose medicine or groceries, not a pretty picture.

I see what you mean Silly Sprite. I agree with that also. I know people that really cannot afford helath insurance and thank goodness some states do have programs to help especially when there are kids involved. There has to be a way to make the system fair so that people can pay according to what they make and their family situation not whatever the insurance company requests from them. But it is also true that if we were in Italy for instance we would pay double the taxes that we pay in California so for me even when we made little money I always felt that I could use that extra money to get some kind of coverage. If we all stop paying insurance and try to get on some state program the states will be out of money pretty soon and then even the people that really needs it won't have it. Then maybe they will really finally realized that the system is a mess. Let's see what happen with the elections in November, I am not sure I have hopes.....

I am so not for a Universal Health Care system in the states!  As in the UK, it was a good idea in the beginning and worked great at the start but now after nearly 60+ years the NHS has gone downhill.  If  whoever gets into office in the states actually gets to institute a program like this, I might as well stay put here in the UK.  I have had nothing but wonderful healthcare in the states with and without insurance.  I like to be able to choose my healthcare not have it dictated to me as to which doctor I can see simply because I live in that "catchment" area.  I find this atrocious.  I can't remember who said it early on but they were right when they say GP's here on NHS have no incentive to better their practices.  The waiting lists are ridiculous and I am pretty sure that is what will end up happening in the states. We worry now about our elderly patients being able to afford their medications, what about when they can't even get in to a see a specialist because they are so backed up with a list of patients?  For some of us the amount we pay in taxes here towards the NHS could be better spent on paying for our insuance in the states.  I have been bounced around for over 3years on a list over here and I am tired of it!  The doctors don't act like they care that's just the way it is.  I've seen Michael Moore's movie but some of you have pretty much said the same thing I would... he just doesn't show both sides of the picture.

There is a study somewhere comparing the cost of health care to the consumer, Canada vs. the USA.  It turns out that the Americans pay the same and in some cases more per capita than the Canadians who have socialised healthcare.  Canadians pay taxes and Americans pay co-pays/per service etc.. 

The difference is that yes, Americans can choose (so can Canadians) but a good percentage have nothing. Whereas in Canada and the UK, at least everyone has something. 

I've experienced all three systems and even though it has big problems, waiting lists and a doctor shortage, I think Canada has the best of the three in that it provides care for everyone with an American style of service.  No system is perfect.  Except Turkey apparently, my office mates (turkish) keep telling me...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2101547,00.html

This scares me so much as we are potentially going to the US next year if DH gets a job there.

Medical coverage is scary on either side of the pond, but I'm hoping things will work out fine for you. The job your husband gets will probably have insurance. If not (or if you need coverage until the work insurance kicks in), check out this forum: http://talk.uk-yankee.com/index.php?topic=39254.30. It has lots of links to options for getting insurance in the U.S.

For what it's worth, I've always been happy with the range of choices and quick service I got with private insurance in the U.S., and I could always afford co-pays etc (even when I was *way* crazy low on the income scale), so hopefully you will be fine. I always planned a budget that included saving money back for unexpected costs (whether it be medical costs or car repairs), and I was fine.

I don't know if I am using the right terminoligy but when I say Universal Health Care I just mean that everybody is covered not necesserly that the goverment is in charge of the health care system which I call socialized health care. What Hillary Clinton and Obama want to do is create insurance plans that are sold by the states and can be more affordable and will not deny coverage to anyone. If you have good insurance with your job you will be able to keep it. With socialized health care like the NHS the goverment is in charge of paying hospitals and doctors which are getting paid even when they are not doing a good job. With the system that Hillary Clinton wants nothing is going to change for doctors and hospitals they will still govern themselves. The state's insurance plans will pay them just like the private insurances are doing right now. I know that California already has a plan that is called Healthy Families but right now only coveres children they've being trying to also get adults covers but there is no funds.
Right now my husband has great coverage with his job but we had our daughter on the Healthy Families program when my husband was in Law School and the social worker was really sorry they didn't have enough funding for us, we were both denied coverage by Blue Cross for stupid reasons. That's why I really would not mind to pay a little more taxes and get a system like that because one day my own kids might need it.