I always found the US health system worked perfectly well, and the price of the drugs I needed not too bad. The problem is that the drug companies are in control and the government won't stand up to them as they do in some other countries eg. Australia's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, to negotiate better prices. The one thing I did think was good about going to a general clinic was that I saw the practice nurse for most things, and only saw a doctor if the nurse assessed I needed greater expertise. The company I worked for paid my health insurance so I've no idea what it cost. When I go to a hospital in Thailand all the vital signs - weight, blood pressure, etc - are taken by the nurse whereas in some other countries the doctor does that - and a waste of their time it is. However I didn't think the quality of medicine was that great. I went to an ER at a major university teaching hospital in California with bleeding from the anus once, and was told absolutely and definitively that it was not hemorrhoids. The colonoscopy (I had to wait three weeks) determined absolutely and definitively that it was hemorrhoids. I happened to see the ER invoice - it was $4,000 (that didn't include the colonoscopy. I've had a colonoscopy elsewhere and it was barely four figures). However my experience of Thai hospitals (and that of my friends) is that the doctors haven't kept up with any professional development, and are between five and ten years behind their peers overseasOriginally Posted by cdnmatt
I gather that the shortage of general practitioners in North America (including Canada) is a failure of government regulations together with the enormous incomes medical specialists can command (another reason why health insurance is so costly). If you ever want to see how powerful a closed shop/trades union can be, you only have to watch the American Medical Association in action. The NRA have nothing on their lobbying abilities
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