This is honestly ridiculous and typical sales tactics.
In the end you're happy to pay $1000 for a 6 hour stay...
Anywhere else in the world if they tried asking $1000 for that they'd get laughed out of the room, $11,800? Heads would roll.
In the end you're happy to pay $1000 for a 6 hour stay...
Anywhere else in the world if they tried asking $1000 for that they'd get laughed out of the room, $11,800? Heads would roll.
My care included a tetanus shot, intravenous liquids and antibiotics.
So yes, I considered the $1000 reasonable.
The ER doctor and radiologist were in-network so I paid the insurance negotiated price.
All-in-all, the dog bite cost me $5000. The ambulance was $1800.
For that money you can get a week's care at a premium private hospital in Europe.
An emergency ambulance costs 100 euro.
I think America has been with an extortionate health care system for so long you guys are starting to consider it 'reasonable'
It isn't.
Let me put it another way. You can fly from America to Europe three times for $1800.
I want a single payer system.
What is needed is real competition in the health care sector - because at the moment the whole thing in America is a coalition/monopoly between insurance, pharma and health care companies with the sole intent of giving you no choice but to pay and say thank you.
The supposed evil sole individual human you postulate as the source of dire evil is not the problem usually, rather the evil collective corporation or other organization calls the shots when we see these sorts of industry wide systematic abuses.
Also, emergency last minute round trip flights to Europe are absolutely not $600 as you claim.
Also no wonder healthcare is so expensive in the US - you're actually arguing for it...
https://www.google.com/flights?lite=0#flt=/m/02_286./m/056_y...
The fact that you're paying 100 Euro for the trip means is subsidized. Which is great, and it should be, but don't pretend 100 Euro is a reasonable price if you're actually paying for it.
Using an average wage in the US to be double of Europe I'd say $200 for an ambulance ride in the US is a reasonable price.
Also an ambulance ride is like 20-30mins tops and within a day there can easily be 4-5 calls in a larger city - that's more than enough to be profitable.
2 x EMTs @ $2,000 = $4,000 / month
1 x $100,000 amublance amortized over 3 years = $3,000 / month
150 gallons gas (150 miles per day @ 30mpg) x $2.50 = $375 / month
Callcenter = $500 / month
Overheads = $1000 / month
Supplies = $1000 / month
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Total cost = $10,000 / monthThe omission of things like liability insurance is curious, as well.
(And they are all employed by the state [NHS], the state self-insures for liability, just like it self-insures for the ambulance’s car insurance.)
For a fun little exercise, look up the average salary of an EMT.
When I did it on the side, six years ago, starting salary was $9.60/hr. (Thankfully I was doing it for experience, not a living).
You also seem to be arguing that Europe healthcare is cheaper and therefore better, even though it obviously is not that simple (I'm sure you know it isn't that simple. That's just how your reply comes across). For example, if I get cancer I would much rather be in the United States, despite the problems with their health care system, simply because I have a higher chance of living.
From your source: "Around 40% of cancer cases could be prevented by reducing exposure to cancer risk factors including diet, nutrition and physical activity".
Americans live a lifestyle (fast food, less walking) that leads to a much higher risk of cancer than Europeans, the difference in mortality rate is mostly explained by this.
Another way of thinking about this, looking at your data, do you really think Australia has the worst hospitals in the world because they have the highest cancer rate?