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Topic: Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,
Posted by: Kathleen Healy
Date/Time: 14/10/14 11:11:00

There are costs involved in setting up processes to charge and then to manage, report, chase and redistribute funds collected. So the first immediate effect would be to increase the cost of delivering healthcare. If you charged people on low incomes a token amount, you would have to charge someone else the difference between the collection cost and amount actually recovered.

At the moment radio stations are running ads encouraging people to report early to their GP if they have; a persistent cough or blood in their urine or poo. This is because many people late report, reducing their chances of recovery and increasing the cost of treatment. So discouraging people from presenting at their GP would be likely to increase costs later as they turn up critical in A&E or more seriously ill at their GP.

Our universal, free at the point of use system is not only the humane and compassionate way to provide healthcare, it is also, as the Commonwealth Fund report shows, the most cost effective way to deliver it.

The Obamacare reforms sought to require everyone to take out insurance from an early age, it also sought to prevent insurance companies refusing to cover people with pre existing conditions and to require a minimum standard of cover that a policy would have to provide. There has been great resistance to the policies, in particular, young healthy people wanted to keep their cheap policies even though they wouldn't cover much when they got older and sick. US Healthcare is a mess and Obama's attempts to introduce an element of universality with everyone paying in from when young has been strongly resisted. Resistance has come from an industry that takes 18% of US GDP, a colossal and powerful lobby. If we are debating whether we can afford the NHS, we should look at some of the alternatives, which indicate that we really can't afford them.

Entire Thread
TopicDate PostedPosted By
I am starting to lose faith in the NHS04/10/14 19:28:00 Susan Kelly
   Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS05/10/14 17:33:00 Vanessa Smith
   Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 09:07:00 Angus McPhail
      Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 09:29:00 Guy Lambert
         Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 09:48:00 Vanessa Smith
            Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 10:10:00 Nigel Brooks
         Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 11:42:00 Will Watson
      Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 11:22:00 Susan Kelly
   Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 11:36:00 Tomasz Keller
      Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 11:54:00 Iris Hill
         Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 12:35:00 Nigel Brooks
            Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 12:52:00 Angus McPhail
               Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 12:58:00 Will Watson
                  Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 13:12:00 Iris Hill
                     Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 14:21:00 Arnold Saxton
                  Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 14:11:00 Vanessa Smith
                     Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 14:23:00 Will Watson
                        Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 14:48:00 Philippa Bond
                           Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS06/10/14 15:20:00 Angus McPhail
                              Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS08/10/14 12:06:00 Will Watson
                                 Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS08/10/14 13:57:00 Guy Lambert
                                    Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS08/10/14 14:26:00 Will Watson
                                       Medical tourism08/10/14 15:27:00 Sandie Goodman
                                    Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS08/10/14 16:21:00 Susan Kelly
                              Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS08/10/14 15:28:00 Andrew Cumming
   Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,08/10/14 15:39:00 Richard Greenhough
      Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,09/10/14 10:13:00 Sam Hearn
         Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,09/10/14 10:46:00 Guy Lambert
            Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,09/10/14 11:31:00 Gerry Tan
               Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,09/10/14 13:16:00 Vanessa Smith
                  Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,09/10/14 14:04:00 Philippa Bond
               Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,09/10/14 14:00:00 David Roberts
               Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,13/10/14 19:03:00 Kathleen Healy
                  :I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,13/10/14 23:40:00 George Knox
                     Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 00:18:00 Guy Lambert
                        Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 09:31:00 Vanessa Smith
                        Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 11:11:00 Kathleen Healy
                           Re:Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 13:34:00 Sam Hearn
                              Re:Re:Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 14:43:00 Vanessa Smith
                           Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 16:31:00 George Knox
                              Re:Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 16:52:00 Guy Lambert
                                 Re:Re:Re:Re::I am starting to lose faith in the NHS, the banks, the energy companies, the pension funds, insurers,14/10/14 19:18:00 Kathleen Healy

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