Obamacare hits home ~

What "universal health care" exists--or will exist--that you think Obama should have?

BTW, in this country, right now, your friend's father would have been treated for each emergency--for free, if he needed it--in the ER...but would NEVER have the surgery needed to correct the underlying problem.

I'm assuming her father was in a remote rural hosptial like I work in and was awaiting transfer to a coronary care unit in the city.  If he needed a pacemaker and it wasn't life threatening then he would be placed on the waiting list for the next available bed.  The most needy person would be triaged before him. 

I'm sure he got his pacemaker before 8 weeks were up.  We have  a limitation on each Hospital trust that patients must be seen and treated within that time frame.  Our Hospital has it down to 1 week!!

Not a bad price to pay for totally free health care.

 But it's not free.  You pay very high taxes for it.  And, the UK admits that the healthcare entitlement is broke!  It's unsustainable!

EDIT:  Added a link to the World Health Organization information.

I'm not so greedy I won't pay higher taxes so that the working poor can have health care--especially when it means that the quality of health care may improve.  All the countries that have better health care than the US have socialized medicine.

Medical insurance is basically the same as socialized medicine, but it's run for profit.  The insurance company does not pay your medical bills, they use other peoples' insurance premiums to pay them, and pocket the rest--or use it to buy lobbyists and political influence. 

www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html

 I guess you are calling me greedy.  There is nothing stopping you from writing a check anytime, anywhere to the gov't!  Do you give charitably?  Many of us do.  In fact, Americans are the most generous in the world when it comes to the % of income they give charitably.  There are many sites if you google this, that confirm this fact.

If you would rather the working poor suffer than get health care because you don't want to pay higher taxes, yes, I would consider that greedy, no matter how much you give to charity.  I don't make enough money to pay the health care costs of all those who can't afford it, so writing a check to the government is useless.  Are you thinking out these responses, or these just emotional, knee-jerk replies?

And again you ignored my main point:  the rest of the world has been gaining on, and passing up, the US in health care quality for several decades.  And all of the countries that are ahead of us have some form of national health care.

 It is extremely naive to think the gov't will spend our tax dollars in a viable, and waste free manner.  They have never spent a tax $ responsibly...So, yes, I would rather everything stayed private, with a small amount of regulation for safety purposes.  

You pay a percentage of your gross earnings.  Because I earn in a higher tax bracket I pay between £200 to £450 (depending on overtime gross) per month.
NHS is sustainable.  It has been sustained since the end of WW2 and is still doing very well.  We are though forced to respond like every other government department and cut back on excess non-front line personnel and initiatives. 

What do you mean by "the health care entitlement is broke"?  We have a massive overspend from last year that we are still reigning in but we also have that in defense and no one is talking about not having soldiers and national defense just as no one is suggesting privatizing public health.  The privatized model has proven unworkable for a fair and just society.

 To my earlier point, it is not "free".  I watch a lot of cable news and read a lot.  I have only heard bad reports about the sustainability of NHS.  I have seen it reported on the BBC!  Even Canada's system is on the verge of being bankrupt.