Health Care

[bay]

Talk to me about this. One really big failing in America is lack of health care if you don't have money. Talking about socializing medicine here will get you burned at the stake even though everyone knows the private health care system just ain't workin!

for an industrialized country we have terrible maternal/infant death rates, we have woefully inadequate health care unless you have money and insurance.

But my friends in countries where there is state run heatlh, complain about that too... long waits for services, inadequate service, etc.

Is there a good system???? I really don't know. I am asking because I want to hear the viewpoints.

[ciaranxavier]

public health cares the only system. every one has a right to free health care.

[bay]

I agree ciaran. no one should have to face losing their home because of medical debts. ugh.... but have those public systems worked? I want them to!

[Enver]

I agree ciaran. no one should have to face losing their home because of medical debts. ugh.... but have those public systems worked? I want them to!

Cuba has an excellent health care system. The only problem it faces is getting cutting-edge medical equipment and medicine due to the lack of trade with the US and the EU in particular. France also has a very good public health care system.

[ciaranxavier]

Cuba has an excellent health care system. The only problem it faces is getting cutting-edge medical equipment and medicine due to the lack of trade with the US and the EU in particular. France also has a very good public health care system.

yes very well said, canada has a public health care system and ive never really had to worry about affording pills or paying my doctor.

[bay]

that's cool. it's something I'd really like to see changed in this country if I were to stay here.

[flax]

The main thing is that Health care costs money and it has to be paid for.

If you want to do it via taxes or insurance is the question here.

From an equality and humanistic standpoint the choice is kinda obvious.
In a public healtcare system you get the care you need not the care you can afford.

But does have questions that have to be answered.
Should you allow private healtcare at all if you dont you make laws about what ppl can to make a living.
If you allow private healthcare that by defenition means you buy more of it.

Here in sweden we have exelent public healthcare imho, of course there are things that need to be tweaked etc but as a whole its realy good.
Things are changing i guess but thats mostly becase we are moving away from the scandinavian welfarestate model towards something else.
Something im not all to happy with but what can i do but whine and vote :P

One other thing that is a problem with healtcare is that science is running away from productivity.
Healthcare is as such is seeing rapid development we can now treat more things and our treatments are getting better and better.
The thing is this costs more and more money.
The cost is rising faster then productivity in society as a whole.

So if we are going to keep giving the best care possible to ppl its going to take a bigger and bigger slice of the pie.

Then again if ppl realy used the peace divends ppl where talking about after the end of the cold war this shouldnt be a problem for quite some time.
But i guess jetfighters are sexier the hospitals.

Flax.

Ps.
Im sorry for what is probably quite horrible spelling but im running quite tired atm and my dyslexia starts showing then AND english is not my first language but i hope i do make myself understood atleast thats what important.
Ds.

[An Céachta Dearg]

Unfortunatly the Minstry of Health and Children here is seen as the poisen chalice and no politian wants the job. They therefore give to the PDs who did not attain a high enough vote to be ethically given a ministry. Ever since Harney was made minister things have gone from bad to worsen she need sto be removed

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a148/gammagoblin/harney1.jpg

Mary Harney is to remain on as leader of the Progressive Democrats.

The Minister for Health has been acting leader since former Tánaiste Michael McDowell lost his seat in the General Election, and resigned from politics.

She said this was only a temporary measure as she did not want the job permanently, but at a PD parliamentary party meeting last night, she agreed to formally take over the position.

It now seems that the leadership contest planned for the Autumn will not take place.



Harney's reluctance is understandable now that people are beginning to wise up to the real nature of the PD"s Raison d'être. Not long ago, eyebrows were raised when Ex-Junior Minister of State, Tom Parlon (booted out of office by the Laois-Offaly voters, despite his christening of the area as 'Parlon Country') decided to accept a job with the Builders pressure/lobby-group, The Construction Industry Federation.

As part of his role in the last government, the former Laois-Offaly TD oversaw the Office of Public Works, which gives out lucrative contracts to construction firms.


Why this should come as a surprise to anyone totally astounds me:


In the free-market world of job employment, business ethics has become a privatised matter. By this material standard, Mr Parlon, who was reportedly head-hunted by the captains of brick and mortar, has followed this principle of mammon.


Ah, the principle of mammon, a phrase I think PD members and politicos have tattooed on the inside of their eyelids to constantly remind them of which God they serve.

Throughout their brief history the PD's have been at pains to remind us at every opportunity that they are in favour of private enterprise because it offers best value-for-money, so it is interesting that Parlon's first task in his new €250,000-a-year-post will be to attack the Gov'ts plans for obtaining value-for-money from the members of Construction Industry Federation (CIF):

The country's biggest builders' lobby group is confident that former Minister of State Tom Parlon will head up a legal challenge to a Government policy he once supported.

The 53-year-old, who has taken up a €250,000-a-year-post as head of the Construction Industry Federation (CIF), will oversee its legal action against the new system of awarding fixed price state contracts.

A spokesman for the CIF confirmed that he would be responsible for following through the decision to challenge the move in the European Court of Justice.

"I'm sure Tom, given his background, will be a more than capable leader," its head of public affairs Martin Whelan said.

Last February, the government introduced the fixed price contracts for public building contracts in a bid to halt massive cost over-runs in such developments.


Mr Parlon, who was then Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (OPW), described them as a "key reform" and said they would lead to "greater price certainty".


Hypocrisy, thy name is Progressive Democrat Tom Parlon

http://www.google.ie/imgres?imgurl=http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a148/gammagoblin/harney1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://hubriticanomaly.blogspot.com/2007/07/chief-rat-says-im-staying-as-all-other.html&h=139&w=90&sz=79&tbnid=zW0sjmQTdK4J:&tbnh=139&tbnw=90&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmary%2Bharney&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=1&ct=image&cd=1

[bay]

Flax.

Ps.
Im sorry for what is probably quite horrible spelling but im running quite tired atm and my dyslexia starts showing then AND english is not my first language but i hope i do make myself understood atleast thats what important.
Ds.


no apologies necessary flax! You are doing great. I couldn't converse in Swedish!