Discuss the US Presidential Election & Health Care

Yesterday we discussed the war and how foreign policy will matter in your decision next Tuesday. Today our series of election discussion pieces continues with Health Care. With an obesity epidemic, a failing economy, and ballooning health care costs, which candidate has the best answers to making sure that Americans are able to stay healthy without America being bankrupted in the process?

Comments

Re:Cuba?

[apathy maybe]

Got some numbers on Cuba's healthcare being a failure?

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_care_in_Cuba
References the World Health Organisation.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the chance of a Cuban child dying at five years of age or younger is 7 per 1000 live births in Cuba, while it's 8 per 1000 in the US. WHO reports that Cuban males have a life expectancy at birth of 75 years and females 79 years. In comparison, the US life expectancy at birth is 75 and 80 years for males and females, respectively. Cuba's infant mortality rate is lower than the US with 5 deaths per thousand in Cuba versus 7 per thousand in the US. Cuba has nearly twice as many physicians as the U.S. -- 5.91 doctors per thousand people compared to 2.56 doctors per thousand, according to WHO.

Despite the US embargo on Cuba.

Dude, you just fucked up. Cuba's health system is the best in "Latin" America, and is in many ways better then the USA's. Tell me how that is a failure?

My Own (Extremely) Biased Take on Their Plans

[Atmchicago]

Wow - you criticize Obama for not providing the details, but when you remark that he has lengthy PDFs you don't want to bother to read. Either you've already made up your mind and are just rationalizing your opinion, or you don't really care enough about the topic to do your research.

At least you admit to having bias, but then I fail to see anything meaningful at all in what you wrote. At the very least, you should said that you don't have enough information to make a sound judgment on the topic, which is fine. Unfortunately, the norm is that people don't want to admit that, and would rather just make up some reasons for their opinions rather than admit they don't know.

Re:One of the better ideas to fix health care...

[MPAB]

I agree. I'm a doctor in Spain and the system works exactly that way. Here it's not the insurance companies, but the "benevolent health system" that press us into delaying or denying tests and treatments to people. The exact people that see a nice amount of their income substracted de facto by the health system.
Those that want (and can) go to the private system to get things done ASAP. They are paying double, though: to the public system which they can't renounce and to the private system.
Still, nothing can beat the fact the public system is obliged to receive and trat you as long as you're alive. But once inside it's not the money but the "I know someone inside" or "I'll file a complaint" that will get you the best bed, the shortest queue or the specialists you want.

Re:A Canadian On Healthcare

[grub]

I contacted Canadian medicare and was told that the closest appointment they could give me was EIGHT MONTHS away. It would be another SIX MONTHS after the consult to have any testing I needed done then another SIX MONTHS to see the doctor for my results.

This whole post reeks of US FUD.

First off: you don't contact "Canadian medicare", there is no such thing. You contact your doctor who schedules you with a specialist.

Fact:I went to my doctor on a scheduled check up and because of some minor thing he wanted me to see a cardiologist. It wasn't an emergency and I was there in about 2.5 weeks. An emergency (your "ASAP" situation) certainly would have gotten you in faster.