Why do Americans seem to be so scared of a European/Canadian style health care system?

[wyldwolf]

VERY good (IMO) explanation found at Quora this morning:

In a word - fear - which is largely fueled by four things.

1. A false assumption (with big political support) that a system based on universal coverage is the same thing as a single payer system. It isn't. Germany is a great example of a healthcare system with universal coverage and multi-payer (many of which are private insurance companies). We tend to lump the two together (single-payer and universal health coverage) because it’s convenient to argue a simple comparison than a more complex, nuanced one.

2. A fear of "rationing" - which was set ablaze by Sarah Palin and her cavalier remarks about "death panels." The reality is that ALL healthcare (globally) is rationed - but systems from all the other industrialized countries start with “universal coverage”. Our system is largely based on who can afford to BUY health insurance - and if it's provided through employment (about 150 million Americans) you're chained to your employer for health benefits. It's artificial, but it's a great way to keep wages depressed because the employer is contributing to health benefits and getting a tax benefit at the same time. In other countries – employers make a contribution to the healthcare system – but those contributions accrue to the whole healthcare system – not just their employees.

3. An attitude and culture of what's loosely known as American Exceptional-ism. There is simply no other country on planet earth that can teach us anything. This was highlighted recently by Commonwealth Fund report which ranked the U.S. “dead last” in comparison to 10 other countries. Our entire raison d'être is to be the world's beacon of shining success - in freedom, liberty, democracy and really everything (but especially technology).

4. A fierce independence that has a really dark side. It took another Quora question to really help me see this one. The question was: "Why do many Americans think that healthcare is not a right for its own taxpaying citizens?" Here's the #1 answer by Anon:

The fundamental mythos of American culture, is that no matter how poor or humble your birth, you can through grit, spunk and hard work become wealthy and prosperous.

On the face of it, and from the perspective of a class divided Europe, that seems incredibly noble and empowering. The idea that there is that much social mobility, that anyone can forge their own destiny is a powerful part of the American psyche. When it happens, it is an incredible thing. Something Americans can feel proud of.

However, there is a dark side to this mythos. Which is this ... if anyone can win through hard work and effort, anyone who doesn't win, therefore deserves to be poor.

At the core of all the anti-health care reforms is the single concept "why should I pay for the healthcare of those losers."

Added together, these 4 things all contribute mightily to the runaway healthcare system we have today. Today - the National Healthcare Expenditure (NHE) for the USA is $3.5+ trillion per year (about 18% of our GDP) and it's growing at about 5% per year (for as far as the eye can see). The system we have is optimized around revenue and profits - not safety and quality. That safety and quality is best highlighted by what’s known as “preventable medical errors” inside hospitals. That number? Somewhere between 210,000 and 440,000 – per year.

More stats at the link:

http://www.quora.com/Why-do-Americans-seem-to-be-so-scared-of-a-European-Canadian-style-health-care-system

[djean111]

1. Because Big Health Care and Big Pharma and Big Insurance have paid a lot in order to keep

most Americans scared. Advertising, Government-for-Hire, social site engineering - a lot has been invested in this.

[Jefferson23]

8. Yes..they have and it worked pretty much to their advantage.n/t

[liberal N proud]

2. Because propaganda against "social programs" has been very effective

The talking heads with their talking points have been very good at getting people to vote against their own best interest. In this case, big business enjoys too much profit and will stop at nothing to keep it rolling in.

Chop off the head that feeds the rhetoric and people will quickly learn it is the right thing to do.

[el_bryanto]

3. That's a pretty good summary

I might add in some 100 years of red scares - we are conditioned nationally to think of anything with the faintest whiff of communism as being not just foreign but evil.

But you sort of get to that in #3 in part.

Bryant

[shraby]

5. I agree, Americans have had years and years of propaganda against

health care like other industrialized countries have. All sorts of scare stories. They've been used since I was a child..I'm 71 now.

[Octafish]

4. Money trumps health, like peace.

The Lewis Powell Memo of 1971 - A Corporate Blueprint to Dominate Democracy

http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/en/campaigns/global-warming-and-energy/polluterwatch/The-Lewis-Powell-Memo/

[easychoice]

6. Crap like this walking TURD

oh noes!!!! Not COMMIES!!!!!

[NutmegYankee]

7. If I had a dime for every time I heard the last statement from Anon, I'd be a millionaire

The selfishness and poor bashing in our society is way out of hand.

[JackRiddler]

9. Answer: Americans are not against a universal health care system.

The propaganda is. The health-profiteering corporations are. The politicians and the paid wonks of "realistic" policy are.

The majority of the people would support the adoption of a German or Canadian model. They only need to hear about it. A campaign to have adopted it, explicitly citing these and other countries, would have triumphed against all opposition in 2009-10. Possibly even in 1993-94. Instead, you got an insurance company bailout with a moderate extension of coverage to many of the uninsured (from which I've benefited, thanks). In the end, you get talking points like the above, purporting to blame the lack of a universal health care system on "American exceptionalism" and other abstractions so useful to the wonks.

All that was lacking was the will, and the courage to express ideas with clarity, instead of making up excuses why some incomprehensible compromise is more feasible even though it ends up pissing everyone off.

[eridani]

10. That health care is a commodity instead of a public good fucks us over both ways

If you don't have the money, you don't get care. This winds up costing society quite a bit, as was the case with that kid in Maryland whose mom didn't have $85 to extract an infected tooth. The infection spread to his brain, and he was taken to an emergency room where $250,000 was spent in a futile attempt to save his life.

If you do have money or decent insurance, there is a strong motivation to sell you care that you don't really need. Besides costing extra money, some treatments are risky in themselve.

[Dustlawyer]

11. +1,000,000!!!