While healthcare reforms are common throughout the world, and many reforms are made to match those of more industrialized countries, the raging debate that often goes in systems that exclusively cater to either public or private systems is the complaints associated with each system lacking the other.
While the debate in the US usually revolves around the lack of a public health care system that covers most things and is accessible to all regardless of income bracket, a similar debate in Canada and the UK revolve around the absence of a dual system in which both private and public healthcare is available, as even those who can afford the high costs and expediency of private healthcare, cutting through waiting lists for much needed surgery or medication, often find themselves in the predicament of having to be medical tourists to another country that offers private healthcare in order to receive treatment, as their home country lacks this option in terms of availability.
It’s true that all 3 of these countries – the UK, Canada and US all offer some of the best medical services on the planet, despite their method of funding and any income and claim caps that are often regulated in order to prevent healthcare fraud. The system works, albeit often many people die on waiting lists waiting important organ transplants, surgeries or experimental treatments that are immediately available in private healthcare systems because of the for profit factor.
In this regard, one of the oldest healthcare systems in the world that stretches back to the 1880’s – the German healthcare system – is one that is often given praise and seen as a model for future US healthcare reforms, instead of the Canadian system, is essentially what many countries need. It possesses a dual private and public healthcare system, that is available to both citizens of lower and higher income brackets to choose how to spend their money, and where to spend it.
Instead of in terms of overall coverage through the publicly funded system, the German health care system encourages people to seek mandatory public health insurance schemes, usually administered by one of 110 Krankenkassen, or non profit associations. These usually cover everything from expensive prescription medication, where you have to pay a flat rate of around 10-15 Euros per prescription or pay the full price for cheap medicine such as cough syrup, to basic dental work excluding implants. Children under the age of 18 do not have to pay for anything, and the self employed, students, elderly and high income residents can choose to opt out of the mandatory scheme and settle for private health insurance instead.
Aside from public and private hospitals, there are also non profit hospitals usually administered by churches, charities and other religious organizations such as the German Red Cross. While both private and public hospitals and clinics might provide you with pregnancy pills, these church run hospitals typically do not.
The only thing not covered here that should be covered is eyeglasses and vision care as it is often needed for driving among other things that contribute to the function of a normal human being – as a normal human being.
The US and Canada both can learn from this dual system, and many European countries have begun to adopt this style of system. The freedom of the patient to choose his doctors, facilities, insurance scheme and so fourth should be available in addition to whether or not he should pay out of pocket or it should be covered by the state.
A healthy population is required to run a functioning country into prosperity, while an unhealthy population can run an otherwise prosperous nation into the ground.
In addition to this, hospital stays are the 3rd highest among OECD countries, at around 7 days on average. Doctors and nurses alike are not pressured to perform and adhere to budget constraints by mistreating patients as is often done in Canadian and British hospitals, for example.
Germany also covers nursing costs for the disabled. For the employed, a compulsory charge is taken out of each paycheck that hovers around 14.6 percent on average to cover for healthcare costs. Those considered high income are said to make at least 4,800 Euros per month.
