But shouldn't the real and only story worth discussing among Americans is why is it the only democracy in the western hemisphere that thinks the health of its citizens should be regarded as a profit making enterprise?
Health care and how it would be funded in the UK, ceased to be an issue 70 years ago with the founding of the NHS; the National Health Service. There are also private health companies with their own hospitals etc which many UK citizens are prepared to pay a monthly subscription - or just pay for a one off procedure. Perhaps a unique feature of the UK system is that one will find the very same consultants and doctors working in the NHS also in private health care practice.
To fund health care free at the point of entry in the UK, everyone pays into a common pot on a sliding scale, dependent on ones gross income. And yes, it's the government who collect the moolah; but here's how it works.
Each hospital is given a sum of money dependent on certain criteria: e.g. size of hospital, whether a specialist facility, location, in a city, etc. It is then up to the management of each health facility to budget for the needs of that particular hospital or GP practice; NOT the government.
American's seem to choke on the idea of government as tax collector around issues of health; but doesn't the US government act as tax collector to divvy up for defense etc? Do Americans call that socialism? Nope. So what's their problem when it comes to anything related to health?
There is something rather 19th century capitalist thinking in America that everything should turn a profit; but in the 21st century, health care really shouldn't be one of them.
