| You're also not accounting for the chance that someone would end up more dramatically ill than just the odd flu or a broken bone. [Anecdote from the Canadian socialized healthcare system] For instance, when my brother was 11 he was diagnosed with an advanced brain tumour the size of an average naval orange. He was admitted to one of the country's leading children's hospitals (McMaster in Hamilton) one day and was in surgery the next. He spent a week in recovery, half of that week in a private room, then shared with two others. He received follow up appointments there for the following year or two. They were able to remove the entire tumour in one session, with no remaining traces, and without the [temporary or permanent] paralysis they supposed could occur (they gave it a 50% chance he would lose all feeling and motor ability on his left side). He was in hospital, and they accomplished this all in inside of 36 hours. The cost out-of-pocket to my family was the gas to drive there, and the parking in Hamilton over a couple of days. Oh yeah, and we bought the doctors a Tim Hortons coffee and donuts... edited to add: The mentioned visits included a large number of MRI and CAT scans, among other tests. I'd like you to compare that situation with a like American anecdote: https://www.thebillfold.com/2015/06/the-cost-of-things-a-bra... Nobody lives in a vacuum, my friend. Wouldn't that be nice if we could account for all cases as you have? |