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Old 07-20-2007, 04:43 PM  
Libertine
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Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 17,860
Quote:
Originally Posted by notabook View Post
I'd much rather have government-ran healthcare than the shit we have now. Ideally I would like it not to be government-ran but paid for by the government through taxes and create a new entity to run it.
The Dutch system would work for you, then. Insurance agencies are required to have a "basic" plan (which covers all normal medical care, but excludes things like acupuncture) to which they have to admit everyone who applies, regardless of existing medical conditions, etc. People with low incomes receive money from the government to compensate them for the costs, but getting insurance is mandatory.

The few homeless people who might not get insurance receive medical care nonetheless, and their costs are written off, but nobody apart from them goes without insurance.

Meanwhile, the government pays for some of the most expensive parts of treatment (eg multi-month stays in revalidation centers), so health insurance agencies can insure people without running too much risk.

The best part: private insurance agencies actually compete to provide us with cheap health insurance that will admit everyone.
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