#healthcare is not one of it

[chimaeraonwards]

everytime i hear about the USA healthcare system i lose my mind a little. i live in a developing nation that has universal healthcare and recently had to go to the government dentist to remove my wisdom tooth. Here's how that went:

First Appoinment:

Estimated cost: RM 15 (about 3 USD for the registration & appointment card) + RM 15 (about 3 USD for medicated mouthwash, antibiotics for an infection, and painkillers) = RM 25 (which is about 5 USD)

Amount of time spent: went in at 8 am was done at about 3 pm (there was a lunch break from 1-2pm)

Procedures done: Consultation and Xray (Yes, the x-ray is free)

Surgery was scheduled for 3 weeks away

Surgery day

Wait time before surgery: about 1 hour (I was early)

Surgery prep: 15 mins

Surgery itself: less than 1 hour

Amount of medical staff: 2 nurses, 2 specialist doctors (turns out the tooth was a lot deeper than expected), 2 dentistry students

Cost of medication after: RM25 (about 5 USD for way more antibiotics, painkillers, mouthwash etc)

Next appointment was set for 1 week to remove stitches

You may have noticed I left out the cost of the surgery itself. You want to know why?

It was free. 0 dollars.

Basic extractions like wisdom teeth were supposed to be handled by the dentistry students (they were supervised by the professor at all times), but because my teeth were so weird, the professor stepped in with his colleague which made my surgery a classroom - which made my surgery free.

OK but what if the professor did not need to step in? It would have been RM20. About 4USD.

And this wasn't even a fully governmental hospital, it gets even cheaper. I just went to the semi government one because it was closer.

Would it have been faster if I went to a private clinic? Probably yeah! I would be scheduled for a surgery in days rather than weeks. It would have also cost a lot more than I was willing to pay.

It wasn't an urgent procedure, if it was urgent, I would have gotten an appointment immediately.

[I once got a biopsy 2 days after doctors found a weird lump. The biopsy cost me RM20 (about 4USD). ]

Would it have been faster at a private hospital? Yeah, it would. But it's way cheaper to go for a public one. I would even argue that I've had better doctors in the public healthcare system than the private one.

There's also a price cap on prescriptions. If you have a prescription, the price is capped at a certain number for a month. So for example, if I get a prescription for mental healthcare, I didn't have to pay more than RM40 (about 8USD) for the whole month. It didn't matter how many different medications were on it or what the doses were. The price is capped per prescription.

Okay but what about medical insurance? Well, it would cover BOTH private and public hospitals.

Is this universal healthcare system free from criticism? Hell no.

Some medications aren't subsidised and can cost a lot of money. The process to get it on the subsidy list is a lengthy one.

A lot of the time, people with disabilities face problems getting support and access.

Wait times can be too long for some people, especially with procedures that have a wait list.

People in remote and rural areas have a lot of trouble getting access to these services, especially if they need a specialist

Mental healthcare is still very limited

And so much more!!!

But would I trade universal healthcare for a fully privatised one? Fuck no.

A working public healthcare system isn't a myth. It's not perfect and should be improved. But it works, and it's hell of a lot better than a fully privatised system.

"Universal Healthcare doesn't work, sure it's more affordable but the often months long wait times for appointments are ridiculous!"

Yeah you're right, the system where we all just ignore our health out of fear of financial destitution is much better. I mean I haven't been to a primary care doctor since they were called my pediatrician, but if I can ever afford to go, golly it'll be so fast.

[gwessing]

Honestly I hope that the UHC guy becomes the next D.B. Cooper we've been needing a Mysterious Guy to show up and become an unsolved mystery legend

[artsybi]

people are saying that the assassination of the united healthcare ceo changes nothing.

blue cross blue shield almost immediately rolled back their new "if surgery goes too long you have to pay for anesthesia out of pocket" policy in the wake of his death. that's DEFINITELY a change, and a great one at that.

direct action does work, actually. may i recommend killing a few more ceos while we're here? really strike fear into their hearts and maybe we'll get even better policy changes, i believe in us.

[samwpmarleau]

would love to know why the cops keep releasing photos and information about the uhc shooter, because what we've learned:

attractive

smart

rich — but a class traitor

no criminal history

by all accounts a good person

killed the one person he intended to kill and no one else

grievance that's both personal (his botched back surgery + family member illness) and ideological (fuck the healthcare industry)

politics are a weird mix of both right and left, so republicans can't call him a crazy liberal

concise, well-articulated manifesto

seemingly got caught on purpose, or at the very least was not caught by actual police work, and furthermore insulted the police

like? how are these things supposed to make me feel less sympathetic towards the guy?

[spencer-is-alive]

you know what, I’m actually glad to be living through a historical event rn

[neon--nightmare]

i hope they didn’t catch the guy, but if they did, L truly was real 🙏

[izze-art]

med school may be difficult but at least katara has a philosophy ta to rant about the healthcare system to (bonus part is that he’s madly in love with her)

[rowsandrowsofnothing]

I just want to share why I absolutely do not give a fuck that Brian Thompson had a family. It’s simple.

I have one too.

Me, who:

Was born needing heart surgery, and if a team of six surgeons hadn’t argued for me while I was in the womb, I would’ve died at birth from internal bleeding. My parents would have had to watch their baby choke to death on his own blood.

Grew to suffer severe chronic pain through joint damage that I am unable to receive treatment for, and must go through with literally not even medication. The only mobility aid I have is a cane my father was unable to use anymore.

Was born with spinal deformity that developed into scoliosis. That I just have to live with because insurance says it isn’t severe enough for surgery, despite my hips being noticeably displaced to the point my legs are different lengths.

Needs allergy shots to be able to go outside without risking anaphylaxis. My family spent almost four years chasing them because insurance said I had to fail EVERY other drug and treatment on the market before I could have the shots. We were bounced from doctor to doctor, hospital to hospital, begging for treatments that we knew would fail. My parents spent thousands on failed treatments in a desperate attempt to get me ANY relief from the pain I went through daily.

Is incredibly lucky, because despite all the shit my family went through, I lived. We had just enough money to spare on trying to get me treatment.

I am lucky because I lived.

Millions of others did not.

My extended family has lost people because of health care denials. Too many everyday people have died for money in these people’s pockets.

Brian Thompson and scum like him are directly responsible for the deaths and suffering of millions of Americans. His money was made with blood, and he paid for it in blood.

Deny. Defend. Depose.

[starquiet]

Gunning down a tyrant health care CEO is morally defensible on the grounds that such people have made it literally impossible to hold them accountable and affect change in a legal and democratic way. The executive class has spent billions so that they can be entirely insulated from democratic will. And they succeeded.

There is literally no avenue for change and to suggest one is supposed to vote for politicians that don't exist who would hypothetically fix the problem despite the entire entrenched power structure acting against them is untenable.

In our current situation, what else is to be done?

People choose violence when two things are true:

1. A substantial issue

2. A bargaining failure

Have one but not the other, you have peace. Have both, heads roll. We firmly have both. The executive class has wrung the people dry and made absolutely sure that the people have zero ability to bargain. Thus, violence. No one is to blame for this except the executives who deliberately broke the system for their own gain.

Welcome to the 'find out' phase.

[arkangelo-7]

Twenty bucks says the Batkids are giving Bruce the side eye every time they go out after what happened to the United Healthcare CEO…

[closingremarks]

[victusinveritas]

[fuckingpajamas]

The question is no longer: ‘would you steal bread to feed your family?’ but ‘would you put the suffering of countless lives beneath the privilege of luxury?’

[gonetoforks]

RIP Megatron you would’ve loved the unitedhealthcare CEO’s assassination

[violent138]

Dick got extremely frustrated with Tim when Red Robin didn't take any time off after repeated concussions, and wound up changing all the passwords and messing with the spelling on Tim's reports and files, which freaked Tim out enough that he did go for a head CT and a decent nap.

Bruce, much later: "Why is my password not working?"

Dick, seeing a golden opportunity: "Password's the same as always. How many concussions are we up to now?"

Bruce:...