Reviews of Sicko are coming in. As I have repeatedly stated, there are problems with our healthcare system. Some of them inexcusable. However, the single-payer solution that Moore proposes simply would exchange what we have for a whole new set of problems that may be even worse. Remember the grass always seems greener on the other side.
Note that Moore’s most vicious attacks are against a non-profit and a government-run hospital:
He blames all of the industry’s bad behavior on the profit motive. But one of his biggest villains – Kaiser Permanante – is a nonprofit. And while he does a gut-wrenching segment on Los Angeles hospitals dumping homeless patients back on the street after they are treated, he mentions only in passing that one of the guilty parties is a public hospital owned by the government. Aren’t those the same people he wants to put in charge of all of our health care?He tells the gripping story of a man who died of cancer after his health plan refused to pay for experimental treatment. But he never asks his audience to consider that no matter what kind of system we have, it will not provide unlimited care, especially experimental care. There will always be a gatekeeper.
Under a single-payer plan, that person would be a government employee – some might even say a bureaucrat. Would that really be any better?
Moore never gets around to telling us that the underfunded Canadian and British systems have such long waiting lists that the Canadian Supreme Court struck down a ban on private health care, and the British are buying insurance to supplement their government coverage.
Related posts:
- Canadians maul Sicko
- What Michael Moore left out of Sicko
- Sicko: Do I hear bingo?
- Sicko: Right to health care, what’s next?
- Stossel in the WSJ
- Sicko: Leading us backwards?
- If Socialized Medicine is So Good…
{ 12 comments }
Why can’t we have both: A “no-one left behind” equilavent for health care to ensure that essential preventative and therapeutic needs are met, and allow people to pay more if they want to for expedited service.
Why did Canada make this illegal?
if the single payer model is so much more equitable and moral…the why arent we pushing for the same model in legal counsel an representation? is a right to address my grievances in our courts of law somehow subordinate to my right to healthcare?
mike
“a right to address my grievances in our courts of law somehow subordinate to my right to healthcare?”
Does the US Constitution say anything about your
“right” to healthcare?
I belong to a diabetes message board and there are a lot of people from various countries on the board. There are several people, I’d say 50 or so, that frequent there that use insulin pumps. All but 1 of them are American. The people from the UK and Canada just can’t get the funding for it.
Just shut up and bend over. Hillary will take care of you.
You may want to reserve judgement until you actually see the film.
Kaiser is one of many HMOs used as an example. If you think Kaiser physicians aren’t told to forego evaluative tools (let’s say) to keep costs down, you haven’t worked at Kaiser.
BTW, how many of your colleagues come from Canada, France & Britain? *crickets chirping* How many of your colleagues come from Russia, Philipines, India, South America, Africa?
If a government run health care system is so terrible, we’d have a flood of physicians from Canada, at the very least.
Chris,
I would be interested to see the proportion of international medical grads in Canada versus the US.
I also don’t see a flood of American physicians going to Canada, the UK or France.
Bottom line is, every health care system is going to have warts. Moore and other single-payer cheerleaders seem blind to its significant limitations. I simply argue that dismantling our system for one that has its own problems doesn’t make sense to me.
btw – how do you know that I haven’t seen the film already?
Thanks,
Kevin
It’s a film. You can’t state that there parts of current medicine that are ‘inexcusable’ and then start excusing them. This is a good debate to have and no one is going to like the film.
Actually Chris I work with multiple docs from Canada. Also Britain, Italy, France, and much of the rest of western Europe. Maybe you just don’t see them in the ER. A complaint they have always had about the nationalized system is how long it takes to get things done. For a socialized system (and make no mistake that is what it will be) to work Americans will have to accept increased waits and rationing. In my years of practice that is something I have never found americans to be acceptable. Come now chris you are an ER RN you certainly have many experiences with this subject. Additionally with increased waits and rationing the whole present system of malpractice will have to be thrown out the window because very simply, at time docs will be overruled on the medical judgement by government officials for “business” reasons. I am not saying the answer is easy chris but may I suggest you take a good long look at what you are wishing for
The American public is used to an all-you-can-eat buffet of health care. Asking them to switch to canned rations will be impossible politically – which is why none of the major Democratic contenders are proposing single-payer.
So Chris, you’re backing the wrong horse.
The author of this article is wrong. Kaiser Permanente is for-profit, specifically their managed care end of the business, which was the arm Moore was attacking.
I’m from the UK and have to say the NHS (National Health Service) is pretty good actually. Only non-emergency treatments require you to wait for a few weeks, otherwise things happen pretty quickly. Blair has also pumped an enormous amount of money into the system since he came to power, which helps.
To be honest, when I read many USians objections to “socialized” medicine, it’s more often than not like the tale of blind men describing an elephant i.e. they really don’t have much of a clue what they’re talking about.
I’ve seen SiCKO and I think, when you see it, you’ll agree that universal health care is a basic human right and a truly wonderful thing (and perhaps the French make an even better job of it than us in the UK)!
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