Comment by WildUtah | Hacker News Reader

Comment by WildUtah | Hacker News Reader

Shouldn't be surprising. Mexico is an emerging first world nation with universal health care, one of the best run systems in the world. Mexican-Americans live longer than white Americans indicating a long lived biology. And non-smoking Mexicans already live longer than non-smoking Americans while the smoking rate is dropping.

Croatia is also an emerging first world nation (though coming via the second world rather than the third as Mexico is) closely related to nations like Italy and Hungary with admirable levels of health and education. It has the support of the EU and all the experience in developing quality social services that implies.

Croatia and Mexico are good countries to share company with in the longevity statistics.

Of course people will try to scare you by implying those are backward countries. It's like when people compare your education statistics to Finland (#1 in elementary education) and Hungary (home of John von Neumann, known as the smartest man of the atomic and computer ages by the great minds that founded both sciences, and the Polgar sisters). Just because you aren't familiar with a nation doesn't mean it isn't great in some way.

I live in Mexico and pay for private health insurance because I want nothing to do with the government ran health system. Don't know what makes you think it's one of the best ran in the world.

Ideology?

I pay for private health care also because Dr. SIMM either isn't available or isn't convenient for me. But the fact remains that health care that works for the vast majority of things modern medical science can actually improve is available to every citizen.

And the thing that makes the system one of the best in the world is that it provides care at prices that middle class people can afford and where those prices are public quickly and easily to everyone. And it does so with a relatively small cost compared to GDP.

Compare that to the expense of Canada's system or the insanity of the USA system.

I have also lived in Mexico (as an expat) and was blown away by the free public healthcare system. After seeing the doctor, I asked how much the diagnosis and treatment would be. The nurses laughed at me, said "Aye guerito, que lindo", handed me a prescription and sent me on my way.

If the same issue were to come up here in the US, I would have 2 options:

1 - with current ACA insurance - pay $200 + 50% of cost = $700

2 - with no insurance - about $1200 out of pocket

Which option do you think I (and most other people) would prefer?

> Mexico is an emerging first world nation with universal health care, one of the best run systems in the world.

You are joking right? Have you ever set foot in an IMSS Hospital? Describing it as a third world health care service is being generous.

Source: I'm Mexican.

You are joking right? Have you ever set foot in an IMSS Hospital?

Yes. And I've experienced the USA health care system also.

Health care that doesn't require waiting in a dingy room and health care that is effective at treating nearly every condition that modern science can treat well is not the same thing. IMSS will cure you or keep you from getting worse or dying at the same level of effectiveness as the USA's system at 1/30th the cost and you probably can get it for free.

I pay for private care because it's nicer and I don't like waiting, but that private care is very, very affordable also compared to the USA or Canada.

I won't say Mexican health care is perfect, but it is good and it is accessible.

Describing it as a third world health care service is being generous.

I've seen third world health care when I was in Guatemala. It's not just a matter of slow and dingy but of frauds, total lack of available services, dangerously unsterile practices, public ignorance of safe public health practices in both medicine and food handling, and a whole panoply of faults and dangers. And Guatemala is above the world's average income and about average in education/literacy levels. Mexico is not a third world country just because public services aren't as nice as we'd like.

I guess your idea of US hospitals is what E.R. and George Cloney shows you. Sorry for disappointing you but American hospitals and Mexican hospitals are very similar, you have amazing facilities, but you also have some in terrible shape. (I've been in both including IMSS). Source I'm Mexican.

This comment has many extraordinary claims. Some strong evidence would change them from claims to knowledge.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com