You knew it was coming. The infamous Swift Boat crowd is ready to point out health care problems in Canada and the UK, obviously because we know how well the US systems works. Ahhh yes, the memories of the US health care system. I still tingle with joy reflecting on the two times my own father was stopped at the front door of hospitals while they checked his health insurance papers. So what if they were 911 calls and he was dying? This was of course after he opted for treatment at the VA because he was afraid of losing all of the retirement money he saved but thankfully the Republican economic model took care of that after he died.
I also think fondly of the time in Philadelphia when another doctor made sure to keep me coming back for multiple treatments until it was too late to get proper treatment to fix a shattered bone. I guess he had to pay for that summer home and really needed the costly offices visits. See how easy it is to play the "in _______ system everything is terrible" game? The difference in my case is that I have actually used the US system as well as the WHO #1 system so I can compare with real life experiences as opposed to the boogie man talk of the ultra-rich wingnuts.
The Swift Boaters for health care ripoffs are obviously proud that the system is fantastic for the ultra rich - such as the former CEO millionaire who is running this group - but for everyone else, it's neatly tucked in between Costa Rica and Slovenia at number 37 in the world. What a proud, star-spangled ranking that is. Great! God bless America!
The television ads that began airing last week feature horror stories from Canada and the United Kingdom: Patients who allegedly suffered long waits for surgeries, couldn't get the drugs they needed, or had to come to the United States for treatment.The deep pockets who have profited while everyone else has been left behind intend to spend their money to avoid any change that might bring improvements for the broad population.
"Before government rushes to overhaul health care, listen to those who already have government-run health care," intones Rick Scott, founder of a group called Conservatives for Patients' Rights. "Tell Congress to listen, too."
Scott, a multimillionaire investor and controversial former hospital chief executive, has become an unlikely and prominent leader of the opposition to health-care reform plans that Congress is expected to take up later this year. While disorganized Republicans and major health-care companies wait for President Obama and Democratic leaders to reveal the details of their plan before criticizing it, Scott is using $5 million of his own money and up to $15 million more from supporters to try to build resistance to any government-run program.
