Reply To: US Healthcare policy

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#780364
m in Israel
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zehava’s dad — What makes you think “Kupat Cholim seems to work nicely in Israel and the government does not tell you when to die”? Whether it works well or not is somewhat questionable (I was much happier with the system in the U.S.), but the second half of your statement is completely false. The standard “basket of services” (what procedures, etc. are or are not covered) are most certainly determined by the government via the Health Care law. If a procedure, medication, etc. is covered, you get it. If not you can pay for it privately or go without (and possibly die) unless you have private or upgraded insurance which covers more things. In that case, the insurance companies decide if you get the procedure or not.

Bottom line is that health care is limited, so it is always rationed in some way, either via the free market(i.e. if you can afford to purchase it), or via government policy. Even in socialized medicine systems like Israel, those who are rich have a better chance then those who are poor, as they can access healthcare in both ways — through the regular Kuppah, or by purchasing extras on the free market. If you tried to make that illegal you’d just open yourself up to a black market in health care, as there will always be providers willing to sell their services for the right amount of money.