Comments on: Emergency Rooms In Critical Condition

Wait Time In Hospital ERs Increases 36 Percent — And Heart Attack Patients Waiting 20 Minutes

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by cucbn at 01:23 AM

Why the hecck are you comparing our health system with that of Cuba''s? Compare it with the rest of Western World. No one in those countries is trying to get over hear because they think we have it better with health care. I remember a fellow from Germany and I asked him why he didn''t try becoming a US citizen. He didn''t want to risk losing health care. He could always return to Germany if he got sick. Here, he would have to hope that his employment would provide it for him.

[erasmus6]

"To parallel: I may as well teach fitness despite currently being 30 pounds overweight (a new year''''s resolution I have no intention of dropping...)" posted by hypnotoad72

You have no intention of dropping the resolution or dropping the 30 pounds?:)

[erasmus6]

"Socialized medicine results in longer waits for primary care than our system does..." posted by cucbn

If you are talking about Canada, you would be wrong.

[cucbn]

Wow, I should remember to proof-read next time...anyway. I wonder how many of those industrialized nations, especially Cuba, accurately reports it''s healthcare issues to the world. The US is free, and criticism drives our nation for better and worse. The healthcare managers in Cuba are not going to report numbers that would make them, or Cuba, look bad. Here someone might get penalized, then be able to sue the agency they reported on under wistle-blower''s protection. In Cuba, "failures" disappear and are never heard from again, and yes, still today. Utopia does not exsist, and socialism is not an improvement over democracy.

[cucbn]

ER wait times would be long no matter what system of payment or uniververal healthcare was in place. The issue is less monetary and more societal and system related. People in the US do not want to wait for anything, much less 3, 4, 5, or even 6 hours for their mom''s "emergent" CHRONIC health related issue that could wait a few days for an appointment. People that are uncomfortable come to the ER to be treated because they aren''t willing to feel sick at all. As eveidence I provide the military and VA health care systems. A large number these patients are provided with free or minimal copay health care, but military emergency rooms are crammed because their aren''t enough primary care appointments, or there aren''t enough primary care appointments IMMEDIATELY available. Even with socialized medicine, same day service is overly expensive. Wait times for MRI''s, to diagnose critical medical conditions such as cancer, were in the months in Canada at one point. Socialized medicine results in longer waits for primary care than our system does, and punishes (rightly so) citizens for abusing emergency rooms. Socialized medicine is the ULTIMATE HMO...you people don''t know what you''re asking for. As with VA/Military healthcare, the government needed to run large healthcare programs slows things down and decreases overall quality of health.

[alphaa10-2009]

dukepat1 said, "er''s are for EMERGENCY ISSUES not for family practice."
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You miss the point entirely. The health system fostered by the private sector (HMOs) is quite content with the ER crisis as you describe it.

"Let the poor rot, and their children with them," they say. "All we want is people wealthy enough to afford our nifty medical policies. The rest of America, be damned..."

The critics and biggest detractors of a national healthcare system include in their front ranks (1) insurance companies (2) HMOs (predictably) and even the medical associations.

What has their indifference wrought? The country still has no comprehensive healthcare system we can afford. The HMO circus Bush created has left Americans paying 2.5 times more for their health care per capita than what even "socialist" EU systems pay. And America is dead last of industrialized nations in infant mortality-- after even Cuba.

[otdky07]

What do you expect? Our society cares more about Brittany Spears, Paris Hilton, the NFL, NBA, NCAA, etc, than the things that really matter. For instance, your health.

[tucano2]

The illegal aliens, always pushing to the front of the line, have been and are clogging the ER and hospital routines to the point Americans are being killed every day. ENFORCE CURRENT LAWS!

[hypnotoad72]

wpauld - I agree. The fact we can''t even help our own first really makes the entire issue deplorable. One can only help others after they themselves are helped.

To parallel: I may as well teach fitness despite currently being 30 pounds overweight (a new year''s resolution I have no intention of dropping...)

[ubrew12]

The problems with emergency rooms is that they serve people, not money. Miracle drugs, miracle cures, miracle youth-regimes... these all serve MONEY, which is why our health system does a good job of churning out these miracles, and leaves actual humans, damaged and in need of assistance, clogging our emergency rooms.

Humans need to get a clue... they aren''t wanted in the Bush economy. Only money need apply.