Health care myth busting

There's a great post over at Thoughts of An Average Woman on affordable health care and how many American families have been forced into bankruptcy or begging at churches when ill-health strikes them.

I haven't blogged about this yet. But it's something I feel very strongly about. As a permanent resident of the UK, I've been a user of the National Health Service (NHS) for quite some time. I could complain about a number of aspects of the NHS. I want to say first and foremost that it is not the best model for providing health care in Western Europe. France has better. Germany has better. The Scandinavian countries have better.

But I will say this about the NHS. At least it's there. I know that so long as I am a resident of the UK, I will receive health care. For free. No questions asked. I can change jobs, I can start my own business, I could have a precipitous decline in my employment and lifestyle, I could get laid off. Doesn't matter. I will get health care. It might not be in the most luxurious surroundings. It might not be the Cadillac treatment that I would get if I were well-insured and well-off in America. But I will get it and I will not go broke.

Universal access to health care here is the reason that despite an overall lower standard of living, the UK now has lower infant mortality and higher longevity than in the US. On many public health standards, the UK does better.

But I do want to bust some myths about 'socialized heath care'.

• I can choose my own doctor. There are some I can't choose, but that's because their books are full. I can wait for a vacancy and switch to that practice at that point.
• I can buy private health insurance - yes, it exists. And use it to go to private doctors and hospitals and get that Cadillac treatment if I want to. This does not affect in any way my access to the NHS.
• I can go to any doctor in private practice at any time, if I have bought insurance or if I am willing to pay.