Michael Moore knows that, so he had a team of fact checkers working on every fact mentioned.
CNN went over his facts and agreed. Here are some of them:
+U.S. Census Bureau says 44.8 million people were without health care insurance in 2005. With premiums skyrocketing and wages stagnating, the number of people is expected to rise to 50 million.
+The World Health Organization (WHO) says the U.S. health system is ranked #37 in the world.
+Court records show that Aetna Inc, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Cigna, Columbia/HCA all paid huge settlements for assorted damages.
+The Center for Responsive Politics says in 2005 there were 2,084 health care lobbyist registered. There are 535 members of Congress. That's nearly 4 per congressperson.
+According to the Congressional Budget Office, $848 billion will be spent from 2008 through 2016 for Medicare Part D. That's a great bonus for the industry.
Medicare Part D covers 75% of the first $2,250 worth of drugs, then coverage drops to zero until $5,100. The $2850 'donut hole' is a challenge for the sick and seniors while drug prices are rising faster than inflation. $14 million was paid to 11 elected officials who negotiated the Medicare Plan.
+According to Statistics Canada, Canada's GAO, 4 weeks wait for specialist visits and for non-emergency surgery and 3 weeks for diagnostic tests is the norm. 70% to 80% of Canadians find the wait acceptable. Prof. Gerard Anderson, John Hopkins, says only 3% of hospital discharges in Canada, the UK and France had delays in 'elective' surgeries such as hip and knee replacements.
+Drugs in the UK have gone up from £6.65 in 2006 to £6.85 in 2007. With the dollar at it's lowest in 28 years, that would be $13.70 now. The poorest in the UK are challenged by these prices.
+A report from the American Medical Assoc 2006 says Brits had less of almost every major disease than Americans. That the poorest Brit can expect to live longer than the richest American.
+In 2002 National Geographic Today said 11% of our young citizens can't find the US on a map, 29% couldn't find the Pacific ocean, 58% couldn't find Japan, 65% couldn't find France, and 69% the UK.
+A full list of companies that no long offer pensions to new U.S. employees was prepared by Boston College. www.bc.edu/centers/crr/PFFS.shtml
+A 2006 UN report says that life expectancy in the US is 77.5, the UK is 78.5, France 79.6 and Canada is 80.2 years.
+Reported by the French-American Foundation 2003, there is childcare and household assistance for new parents in France.
+There is a company in France, SOS Medecins, that performs house calls.
+The Government Accounting Office in 2004, Newsday in 2005 and New York Times 2006 said basically that money that was put aside for 9/11 volunteers has either not been forthcoming or isn't enough to really help. Much more is needed.
+Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN) on Sept 12, 2006 in the Senate talked about the full medical services available to Guantanamo detainees.
+WHO states that Cuba has sent thousands of doctors to Haiti, Venezuela & Bolivia.
+A UN report says Cuba has lower infant mortality rates and longer average lifespan than the US.
+Polls show the 96% of Cubans have accessibility to health care.
+Health Affairs report 2005 says health care costs $6,697 per capita in the U.S. and is expected to rise. The WHO puts Cuba's health care spending at $229 per capita.
florencev
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+Drugs in the UK have gone up from £6.65 in 2006 to £6.85 in 2007. With the dollar at it's lowest in 28 years, that would be $13.70 now. The poorest in the UK are challenged by these prices.
this must be the English and perhaps Scottish (not UK) charge per NHS prescription item (not only drugs) for anybody who isn't exempt from charges. (Most commonly, the item's a month's supply of drugs.) Another option is a 90-100 sterling a year certificate that covers everything prescribed. The poorest non-exempt people do though find these payments difficult.
(Exemptions: age, plus certain forms of chronic illness.)
In Wales, prescription charges have been abolished.
(Probably Moore said 'the NHS' or his fact-checkers did: it's really common for people -- people here! -- to say 'the NHS' when they mean 'the NHS in England'.)
I haven't seen Sicko.
I'm always leary of statistics. They can often be skewed to any point of view.
- How many of these people did not have health care insurance voluntarily? (Not because they couldn't afford it, but because they didn't want to pay?)
- How many are illegal aliens?
- How many people that didn't have insurance get treated at hospitals anyway?
2) They aren't counting illegal aliens.
3) That's the big problem. Everyone ends up at the emergency room for everything, instead of being able to go to a doctor before things get really bad. This puts so much pressure on the system and is the most expensive way of doing it.
this is untrue, there's been a private medical sector throughout the life of the NHS (because that and lots of money was the only way to get doctors to agree to an NHS), and the Thatcher/Blair years introduced various forms of privatisation of the NHS and 'competition' e.g. private clinics being paid for ops whether or not they did them.
True, the NHS has problems. Any organisation that has 'managers' who wear 'suits' and have been trained in crackpot 'Management Systems' has problems. But the staff - that is the REAL staff, the doctors and nurses, and all those who support them, are second to none. No-One (except perhaps in America) becomes a nurse or a doctor for the money - they do it because they WANT to.
By all means, pull the suits to pieces because it's THEY who waste NHS money, but leave the dedicated carers alone. They do a fantastic job. And, despite the suits, the service is a damn good one.
I have not seen Sicko. Perhaps a link to it, Florence?
Oh - and another point - there should be NO-ONE in the UK without access to medicines. If you're poor, you get them paid for. If you're better off, what's £7 for the drugs to make you better, or at least, more comfortable?
Right - rant over, let's look at the rest of your post.
"+U.S. Census Bureau says 44.8 million people were without health care insurance...". Well, THERE's a system that stinks.
"+In 2002 National Geographic Today said 11% of our young citizens can't find the US on a map, 29% couldn't find the Pacific ocean, 58% couldn't find Japan, 65% couldn't find France, and 69% the UK."
This surprises me not at all. In a country where the average reading age is 12 and football players are more respected than computer programmers, what do you expect? A cousin of my ex partner graduated with a degree and, rightfully, had a party. Her other cousin, an American, 'graduated' from High School - and had a party. The problem was that 'graduating' from High School meant as much to the American as the Degree meant to my ex's cousin. She could not see the difference - even when it was pointed out that the High School graduation was a few steps below the requirement for even continuing on to the exams necessary for entrance to a university in the UK.
"life expectancy in the US is 77.5, the UK is 78.5, France 79.6 and Canada is 80.2"
That seems fair - as averages go, we're all about even then - which probably says more for Western Humanity than individual health systems.
"Cuba has lower infant mortality rates and longer average lifespan than the US"
Less McDonalds' in Cuba I expect.
Here's some unadulterated advice: Eat less, move more.
(Jeez - I'm sorry. Just having a bad day, I suppose)
Otoh you might want to add what happened to me when they thought I had cancer. I week wait for tissue biopsy result (same time as Elizabeth Edwards), result scary, in hospital within 36 hours, under a top team in a top hospital, with a social worker checking everybody'd been informed (work, home, family) and there were no pets to feed (!); totally pain-free after op, totally free to wander round the hospital, free tea and coffee 24-hours a day (not very good, nor was the food); very warm and friendly and great care. Cost? zero. Of course. And it would have been zero even if I'd accepted the nurses' invitation, OKd by the senior doctor, to say there over the weekend (there was a problem about my ride home) and sunbathe!
I did have to wait ten days for the results of this second large-scale biopsy op. the consultant saw me personally, as always; I knew the result before he told me, because he was beaming with joy. (When he gave me the first result, he was on the verge of tears.)
Of course things aren't always as good as that here, snak's experience is probably more typical of the NHS. And I don't actually think the NHS is the best system in the world, one important point apart: it is ranked 1 for access regardless of income. And that means a lot.
S
>age is 12 and football players are more respected than computer
>programmers, what do you expect?
Mind you, the same test found that geographic knowledge in Great Britain wasn't anything to be proud of either. Out of 56 questions, Great Britain (sorry, but their stats don't cover the whole UK) scored 50% correct compared to 41% correct in the US. Canada came in at 48%. Sweden came out best with 71%.
http://www.guardian.co.uk.../story/0,,2124177,00.html
there's also the desperately ill baby whose only hope was a heart transplant, NHS, of course; a donor couldn't be found so she was put at the top of the European list, and a heart was found in time.
thanks for the info
I loved how Michael Moore went to other countries and totally destroyed the right wings ridiculous arguments against universal healthcare.
I laughed, I cried and I enjoyed every second
this issue is so important to our country, its such a human rights issue!!!
i loved when the ex-british parliament member had the same thought as me!!!!
i loved when michael interviewed canadians, and americans living in france!!!
i also loved when michael pointed out the reality of the fact that the drug companies and HMO's lobby our government officials to vote against the american people.
it was great when he pointed out how HMO's began (Nixon)
what a fabulous movie that will open so many peoples' eyes to the facts about healthcare in the usa.......
im so glad SOMEONE cares!
*S*
he truly is one of the few REAL journalists in the usa
:)
read this article about Schip (recommended by a friend on woyano)
it dives into why the Bush administration is afraid of having all of america's children covered - because it would work !
You gotta read this article about the American Cancer Society and the fact that lack of healthcare is costing peoples lives in the United States.
Hey you know AdGuy always gets the last word! ;)