Debate Medical service/cost in the US vs. Anywhere else.

[Peregrini]

Micheal Moore just had an Moore-gasim.
I saw this story this morning and it caught my attention since I am currently seeing more Doctors than I would wish to and I am going in the hospital for 3 days starting Monday. All I can say is I am glad I am doing this here, rather than in Cuba. I would say my chances are 1000% better.

A look at medical costs in Cuba vs. the US
HAVANA — What Cuba says it spends on medical services is a fraction of what it costs hospitals to provide the same services in the United States. A comparison of some medical procedures in the two countries:
_ Cost per day for inpatient hospital stay: $5.49 in Cuba; $1,994 in the U.S.
_ Inpatient hernia surgery: $14.59 in Cuba; $12,489 in the U.S.
_ Hip-fracture repair: $72.15 in Cuba; $14,263 in the U.S.
_ Kidney transplant: $4,902 in Cuba; $48,758 in the U.S.
Cuban authorities did not reveal how they calculated their figures, but said careful study was involved.
While some medical goods are imported, Cuba produces many medicines and labor costs are significantly lower than in the United States, with one doctor saying Cuban specialists earn $25 a month.
Cuban patients also often bring their own sterile bed sheets, hypodermic needles, food and water.
___
Note: U.S. costs are from 2009. Sources: Granma; Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Cuban figures rely on the official currency exchange rate of 24 Cuban pesos to $1, though officials have never clarified whether that rate can be applied to interpret economic data.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed

This is the kind of BS propaganda you get from left-wing NEWS sources. The AP is among the worse. Still carrying Obama's water.

US DOCTORS

General Salary Range

Based on a 2009 report by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were over 270,000 medical specialists employed in the U.S., earning an annual mean wage of $173,860. This figure likely represents base pay and doesn't include bonuses. There were some specialists, representing the bottom 10th percentile, who only earned $51,750 a year, perhaps holding positions in non profit organizations. In the BLS report, salary data is not given for those in the higher percentiles of wages, but specialists frequently earn well over $200,000 a year.

Areas and Wages

Cost of living, demand for specialists, and state laws regarding health care may all be influences on salaries from state to state. For example, New York only reported an average income of $151,750 a year for medical specialists in 2009. Rhode Island was even further below average at $133,670 annually. However, several states pay well above the national average. Nevada, New Hampshire, and Georgia all have state wide average wages between $205,000 and $210,000 a year. According to the 2009 BLS report, Minnesota had the highest average wage for specialists at $218,180 a year.

Type of Practice

The majority of medical specialists worked in the office of physicians in 2009, often times their own private practices, and earned an annual mean wage of $202,480. General hospitals also employed a great number of specialists, but at a much lower average wage of $124,800 a year. The lowest paying positions seemed to be found at colleges and universities, averaging only $101,900 a year. According to the 2009 BLS report, the highest paying employers were outpatient care centers, medical and diagnostic laboratories, and other ambulatory health care service centers, all providing average salaries between $204,000 and $206,000 a year.

By Specialty
In 2009, the American Medical Group Association did a comprehensive salary survey for the most common types of medical specialities in the industry. Nearly all of the median salaries were above $200,000 a year, and many were significantly higher. For example, the median anesthesiology salary was $370,000 a year, dermatology brings in $375,176 annually, and gastroenterology paid $405,000 a year on average. Gynecologists and neurologists were reported as making less, earning $232,075 and $236,500 respectively. Orthopedic surgeons seemed to earn the most, averaging $500,672 for general surgery, $605,953 for joint replacement, and $688,503 a year for orthopedic spine surgery.

How Much Money Does a Medical Specialist Make? | eHow.com
If you calculate the comparison rates it would look like this:
Cuban Dr. $25 per month
US Doctor $202,480/12=$16,873 per month
16,873/25=~675 X difference
Then, if Cuban medicine was at the same cost ratio as the US the numbers would be more like this:
_ Cost per day for inpatient hospital stay: $5.49 in Cuba; $1,994 in the U.S. (5.49*675= $3,705 in Cuba)
_ Inpatient hernia surgery: $14.59 in Cuba; $12,489 in the U.S. (14.59*675= $9,848 in Cuba) This one looks like a deal.
_ Hip-fracture repair: $72.15 in Cuba; $14,263 in the U.S. (72.15*675= $48,701 in Cuba)
_ Kidney transplant: $4,902 in Cuba; $48,758 in the U.S. (4902*675= $3,308,850 in Cuba)

So, who would you rather be treated by? An "over priced" US Doctor or one in Cuba that makes $25 a month. Even Fidel Castro left Cuba for medical treatment.
Not to mention the "waiting" times in other Countries. My Dr. made his recommendation on the 13th. I waited until the 21st to make my choice. We set the 27th to begin because it was more convenient for me. I could have gone in any day after the 13th.
(Won't I be red-faced if I don't come thru this. If you never hear from me again, consider me embarrassed)

 

[TimeNot_0]

The reason here (USA) is because of the insurance costs. I just been in the hospital and all you will see probably are nurses (whom you can give your questions to instead of a doctor, if they even make a short visit just to see you) and perhaps interns dishing out their opinion. In my case I did not know what to do and next time I would take time to look up things on the Internet first to what I had, because I was not really told and tried to wish for more than what could actually happen. This to me ended up in costing more and not all the time do you know what questions to ask or feel good enough to even ask the important questions.

In the end in this Country they (the government) wants more doctor's visits and preventive medicine to take place which with medicare they have you pay that monthly premium. Things happen that you can not always find out about right away especially with government websites about medicare and time to sign up for anything that would have helped.

Not only is not an ambulance paid for with Medicare Part A (which is the hospitalization part only) but emergency room doctors or anything concerning a doctor is not paid for. I have to seek help because I was really sick with the flu that was not suppose be bad (concerning heart disease that fully was not taken care of before with another hospital or a second one the first hospital over 6 years ago) and did not know that I had more time to sign up for Medicare B part than what I really thought and did not find out on the Medicare.gov website. It is on the MyMedicare.gov website and I did not find out until later after the third hospital with this stuff going on of having a heart attack just over 6 years ago.

You will probably have at least two doctors concurring to make a decision, will not see them particularly and only have like I said nurses come in and wonder perhaps what is really going on. If you are looking to be told a decision, you better decide first what question to ask the nurse and have them relay the message to the doctors right away. I did not, and now it is costing me to the point of having to seek help to pay for it. The charges are unbelievable to me and that is all I can say. I'm on a fixed income and had to retire early and because of that lost several hundred dollars more a month because of retiring early, and since they want to raise the retirement age and even the age at which medicare starts, a lot more people in the future will be losing out to me.

Reducing costs would help but like I said they want your own local doctor to take over and prevent it in the first place if possible.

I will and would not go to a hospital anymore but seek a doctor who may be able to help you unless he tells you you have to go to a hospital because crap happens in this world and so far I have little to say about the experience to me that is positive or to me will be in the future.

Remember that some bad superbugs are happening in large cities hospitals and spreading out to other still local hospitals and spread around to any of the other hospitals yet, but it seems precautions are being taken in case these diseases would spread.

Blah~!

 

[TimeNot_0]

That and the fact that not all people have medical insurance in the first place but discrimination has taken place with some people in this Country and I would not count on anyone anymore because of the nature of the economy, people being anti-social, people not really caring, and the epitaph for America may will be

"We Don't Care" while only some people do anymore. I hope I am wrong, but I doubt it will change even if changes take place in the government with any Election coming up or anything else that is happening.

Good luck!

But more people it seems are not having any "Luck" at all.

 

[TimeNot_0]

That's two hospitals this year because............................I don't think they check everything in the first place or tell you everything you may need to know. It may be work load but it is more like "Hell" to me and Adversity seemingly being more common nowadays in my humble opinion.

I don't think a lot of people have the patience anymore to be having a country this way anymore.

 

[TimeNot_0]

And this is all I have to say about it anymore:

FactCheck.org | A Project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center

 

[kcwildman]

well for close to 20 years I worked as a building maintance engineer for comercial office space which ended up being all medical office's. by doing the job I did I had acess to the inner office of many doc.'s of all kind's as well as dentist's. first thing I noticed was that they have the moral's of a barn yard roaster. 90% were screwing the nurse's at the office and then going home to the wife and kid's. the second thing I noticed was if you got no money, to bad we can work something out. but if you got no insurance, well forget it you die. they will in almost every case I over heard they will and do cook the office visit to cover the cost of your copay . but as a whole the medical industry is IN MY HUMBLE OPINNON ranked lower than a rattle snake and just one micro step above lawyer's.. both of which we did manage to servive without for ooohhhhh close to a couple thousand years befor the sheep became dependent on them.......

Micheal Moore
is a parasite on humanity and should be delt with exactly the same way.( given large dose's of drugs untill dead) sorry I just can't stand the guy..

 

[Peregrini]

kcwildman;
I agree completely about Michael Moore. Your absolutely right about Doctors and Lawyers too. The high cost here is partly from malpractice suites ( ambulance chasing lawyers and doctors who don't pay attention). I'm in a small town and I'm lucky enough to have a good primary doctor for over 20 years now. He's got my back, and a small enough hospital to actually care and watch over you. I would never live in or go to the hospital in a big city. A friend of mine asked why I wasn't going to Chicago for important care and that's what I told him too. I'll take my chances here.

TimeNot_0;
I'm really sorry your having such a hard time with Medicare. I am not looking forward to it myself. I may just keep working, if I can, to avoid using it. Good luck with it.


I remember when I was a kid, the doctor came to the house when you were real sick, otherwise you went to his office. But you also didn't go to the Dr. or hospital for every little ache or pain. The hospital was for Big problems. Insurance was provided by employers and not always thru an insurance company. When the insurance companies took over all the business and went "for-profit", that's when things went to hell. They want you to pay in but give you a hard time when it's time to pay out. The government taking it over under Obama-care will be even worse. The only place with more people, whose job it is, to tell you NO than the insurance company is the Government.

 

[Aaron TAYLOR]

Asia is getting more and more attention nowadays for their relatively lower cost and great quality of medical services. Europe and USA is very expensive when we talk about Medical services. Obviously, the reasons are understandable.